Ukraine daily round-up: Russia says first phase over as Biden visits Poland
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The Russian army says 1,351 of its soldiers have been killed in the war so far, but Ukraine says the number is higher
One month after Russia's invasion began, its military is declaring the war's first phase over.
Moscow said its initial aim was to destroy most of Ukraine's air force and navy, but its invasion has stalled and Kyiv is still in Ukrainian hands.
Its efforts are now turning to the eastern Donbas region, a senior military official said on Friday.
So is this a step back? Or a tactical ploy? Western officials and analysts are divided.
The announcement came on a day of developments elsewhere - here's the latest.
Moscow says phase one is over
Russian officials are claiming its army has accomplished its initial goals, and will now focus on the "complete liberation" of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine.
That part of the country contains two pro-Russian breakaway republics - Donetsk and Luhansk.
It's too soon to tell if this represents a downgrading of the Kremlin's ultimate ambitions, but it's definitely a change in emphasis.
Russia could now concentrate its military offensives fully in Ukraine's east.
Read the full analysis from our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams.
Biden meets troops in Poland
The US has sent around 12,000 more troops to Europe since February
US President Joe Biden visited troops at an American base in Poland, near the border with Ukraine. He told them their deployment was part of the global struggle for democracy.
"You are the finest fighting force in the history of the world," the president told the soldiers. "What you're doing is consequential."
Fear in Ukraine's south
On the ground in Ukraine, residents around the country are continuing to live in fear of Russian attacks.
But some people - from a broad mix of backgrounds - have taken up arms.
On the road into Mariupol, 62-year-old Sergei is stationed at one of the last Ukrainian military checkpoints before the nearby front.
"I used to work as fire engine driver, then I took up arms to protect my homeland," he told the BBC's Wyre Davies. "We know what's happening [in Mariupol] and we must not let that happen here".
Inside a battle near the capital
The town of Irpin is just a 20-minute drive north-west of the Ukrainian capital and it lies in ruins.
Few buildings have escaped the damage inflicted by weeks of bombardment from the sky.
"I'm bad," says an older man whose house has been destroyed by a shell. "Children are dying, everyone is dying".
The BBC's Jeremy Bowen has travelled to the town on Kyiv's front line.
Putin says West is trying to 'cancel' Russia
The Harry Potter author criticised Russia's invasion of Ukraine after President Putin defended her
In a wide-ranging speech on Friday, the Russian president criticised "cancel culture" in the West and said Russian writers and composers were being unfairly discriminated against because of the war.
At one point, Mr Putin even likened Russia's isolation on the world stage to the recent criticism of JK Rowling for her views on transgender issues.
The Harry Potter author was quick to reject the comparison. This point is "not best made by those currently slaughtering civilians for the crime of resistance," Ms Rowling tweeted.
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