Russian president Vladimir Putin is expected to give a major speech today ahead of the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine, officials in the Kremlin said.

Mr Putin will address members of both houses of the Russian parliament in Moscow and seek to reassure Russia’s political and military elites on the Ukraine conflict in his speech.

He is also expected to share an analysis of the international situation, with his major address coming just hours after US president Joe Biden walked the streets of Kyiv.

Mr Biden swept unannounced into Ukraine yesterday to meet with president Volodymyr Zelensky in a defiant display of Western solidarity with a country still fighting what he called “a brutal and unjust war” days before the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.

Mr Biden announced an additional half a billion dollars in US assistance during his surprise visit.

He spent more than five hours in Kyiv, consulting with Mr Zelensky on next steps and honouring the country’s fallen soldiers.