Ukraine appears to make biggest breakthroughs in south since war began; Tesla boss rebuked for Twitter poll ‘solution’ to invasion
At a glance: what we know on day 223 of the invasion
Russian state media Tass is reporting that North Korea has backed the outcomes of the “referendums” in four occupied areas of Ukraine that were described as a “propaganda show” and “illegal” by Ukrainian authorities in Kyiv. Tass quotes the foreign ministry saying:
We respect the will of the residents who wished to reunite with Russia, and we support the position of the Russian government on making these regions part of the country. The referendums were held in accordance with the UN charter, which enshrined the principles of equality of people and their right to self-determination, in accordance with legitimate procedures that made it possible to reflect the will of the inhabitants of the two republics and two regions.
This is Martin Belam taking over the live blog in London. You can reach me at martin.belam@theguardian.com