Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Putin hosts China's Xi

* Russia's defence ministry said a Russian SU-35 fighter jet was scrambled over the Baltic Sea on Monday after two U.S. strategic bombers flew in the direction of the Russian border but then left. * Fierce fighting continued in the eastern town of Bakhmut with each side launching counter offensives.

Vladimir Putin and his "dear friend" Chinese leader Xi Jinping planned more talks on Tuesday after a Kremlin dinner where the isolated Russian president showcased his most powerful ally in the face of Western opposition to the war in Ukraine. RUSSIA-CHINA

* Xi is the first world leader to meet Putin since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader on Friday over the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia since the start of the war. * Putin told Xi that he viewed China's proposals for a resolution of the Ukraine conflict with respect.

* Ukraine urged China to use its influence to end the war, even though Beijing's proposals were met with scepticism by its Western allies. DIPLOMACY

* Russia's Investigative Committee said it had opened a counter-case against the ICC prosecutor and judges, arguing there were no grounds for criminal liability on Putin's part and heads of state enjoyed immunity. * European Union countries agreed to give 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine over the next year by digging into their own stockpiles and teaming up to buy more.

* U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was authorising further $350 million in military aid for Ukraine. FIGHTING

* Ukraine's defence ministry said that an explosion in Dzhankoi in the north of the Crimean peninsula destroyed Russian cruise missiles intended for use by Russia's Black Sea fleet. * Russia's defence ministry said a Russian SU-35 fighter jet was scrambled over the Baltic Sea on Monday after two U.S. strategic bombers flew in the direction of the Russian border but then left.

* Fierce fighting continued in the eastern town of Bakhmut with each side launching counter offensives. * The eastern town of Avdiivka, could soon become a "second Bakhmut", a small city where its forces have held out against Russian invaders but risk being fully encircled.

* Russia's Wagner mercenary group plans to recruit some 30,000 new fighters by mid-May. In a letter published on Monday, Wagner's boss warned Russia's defence minister of an imminent "large-scale" Ukrainian offensive. RECENT IN-DEPTH REPORTING

* EXCLUSIVE-Russians flood Kazakhstan with sanction-busting requests * SPECIAL REPORT-Wagner's convicts tell of horrors of Ukraine war and loyalty to their leader

* ANALYSIS-Patchwork fixes to Ukraine grain shortfall leave world vulnerable a year into war (Compiled by Reuters editors)

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