US President Joe Biden will use a high-stakes video conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin later on Tuesday to tell him that Russia will be hit with the toughest economic sanctions yet if it invades Ukraine, US officials said.

The President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin praised the relations between his country and Qatar at all economic and political levels, as well as the mutual cooperation in the humanitarian field, saying that they are a reflection of the personal relations

The United States on Friday announced punitive measures against Belarus targeting the regime of strongman President Alexander Lukashenko, who met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin amid a global outcry over the forced diversion of a European plane.

Russia on Friday threw its weight behind Belarus's increasingly isolated regime, slamming a European overflight ban as President Vladimir Putin prepared to host strongman Alexander Lukashenko.

President Vladimir Putin on Sunday vowed that Russia will "firmly" defend national interests and denounced the return of "Russophobia", as the country marked the 76th anniversary of victory in World War II.

Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny lost his appeal on Saturday against what he said was a politically motivated decision to jail him for nearly three years, but said his faith in God and belief in the rightness of his cause was sustaining him.

Russian police detained dozens of protesters on Saturday as supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny took to the streets following his call to protest against President Vladimir Putin's rule.

Before he returned to Russia, opposition politician Alexei Navalny and his supporters had anticipated he would be arrested and planned to force the Kremlin to release him by staging repeated protests, a close ally has said.

President Donald Trump said he never questioned Russian leader Vladimir Putin about US intelligence reports that Moscow paid the Taliban to kill American troops in Afghanistan, casting doubt on the reports in an interview.

President Vladimir Putin said on Friday Russian society had shown unity by voting to back reforms allowing him to stay in power until 2036 and that Russians had felt the need for the changes in their hearts.

The Kremlin confirmed a coronavirus case in President Vladimir Putin's administration on Friday and the government said measures imposed in Moscow to fight the virus should be extended across Russia.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin called on Wednesday for a ceasefire in Libya after talks in Istanbul, where they also inaugurated a "historic" gas pipeline.