Russia's President Putin is set to bask in the global limelight as a series of high-profile conferences on security in Europe kicks off this week. What could be better for an autocratic ruler, says DW's Bernd Riegert.

For a long time, many saw Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a comic actor who stumbled into the presidency. During the confrontation with Russia, however, the 44-year-old has matured into a respected statesman.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says negotiations with Russia were starting to sound more "realistic" but more time was needed. In a defiant act of solidarity, a trio of eastern European leaders visited Ukraine's besieged capital, Kyiv.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to the United States Congress on Wednesday, thanking its members for the support the US has offered his country and asking for more.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made clear that NATO will not "intervene militarily" in Ukraine. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance's goal was to prevent the conflict from escalating.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says "hundreds" who sheltered in a theater in Mariupol are still trapped. Meanwhile, more than two million refugees have now crossed into Poland.

The Ukrainian president said direct cease-fire talks with Russian President Putin are urgently needed. Zelenskyy added that any agreements with Russia would be subject to a public referendum. Follow DW for the latest.

Speaking to CNN, actor Sean Penn said the Ukrainian president should be invited to speak about the war at the Academy Awards and it would be "obscene" if Hollywood did not oblige.

US President Joe Biden's speech in Warsaw had strong words for Vladimir Putin, but even stronger words in support of a free world. DW's Bartosz Dudek writes that Biden may just have made history.

Two weeks from now, France will know who is into the second round of the presidential election. The candidates will then enter a crucial final two-week period when the gloves are expected to come off in the battle to win votes. This weekend saw a last-ditch attempt by far-right pundit Eric Zemmour to win back support after losing momentum. Meanwhile, the far left’s Jean-Luc Mélenchon is rising in the polls but incumbent Emmanuel Macron, the favourite to win, remains well ahead. Andrew Smith of Chichester University spoke to us about where the campaign stands.

The Ukrainian president hit out at Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, blaming them for the current war and suggesting their 2008 stance against admitting Kyiv to NATO was a clear "miscalculation" that emboldened Russia.