(AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen and that he hopes it will not.

In a preview of an upcoming interview with Russian state television, published on Telegram on Sunday, Putin said Russia has the strength and the means to bring the conflict in Ukraine to a “logical conclusion.”

Responding to a question about Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory, Putin said: “There has been no need to use those (nuclear) weapons … and I hope they will not be required.”

“We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires,” he said.

Putin signed a revamped version of Russia’s nuclear doctrine in November 2024, spelling out the circumstances that allow him to use Moscow’s atomic arsenal, the world’s largest.

That version lowered the bar, giving him that option in response to even a conventional attack backed by a nuclear power.

Russia and Ukraine are at odds over competing ceasefire proposals.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday, in comments made public Saturday, that Moscow’s announcement of a 72-hour ceasefire next week in Ukraine to mark Victory Day in World War II is merely an attempt to create a “soft atmosphere” ahead of Russia’s annual celebrations.

Zelenskyy instead renewed calls for a more substantial 30-day pause in hostilities, as the U.S. had initially proposed. He said the proposed ceasefire could start anytime as a meaningful step toward ending the war.

Putin on Monday declared a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire in Ukraine to mark Victory Day in World War II, as the U.S. presses for a deal to end the 3-year-old war. The Kremlin said the truce, ordered on “humanitarian grounds,” will run from the start of May 8 and last through the end of May 10 to mark Moscow’s defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 — Russia’s biggest secular holiday.

A Russian drone attack overnight on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, wounded 11 people, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said Sunday. Two children were among the wounded.

The attack woke up Valentyna Fesiuk, an 83-year-old resident of Kyiv’s Obolon district.

“I was just sleeping when the house shook. It was at 12:30. An apartment on the 12th floor caught fire,” she told The Associated Press.

The car of another resident, Viacheslav Khotab, caught fire.

“I saw my car burning. I was covered with broken glass,” he said. “I couldn’t do anything.”

The 54-year-old was frustrated with stalled peace negotiations: “They can’t agree on anything, and we are the ones who suffer the consequences.”

Daryna Kravchuk, an 18-year-old student in the district, described how “five to six minutes after the air raid was activated, we heard a strong impact, everything started shaking. … There were three strikes almost in a row after the air raid was activated.”

“It’s very scary to witness, we have been suffering from this for so long. People are just suffering all the time. … It’s still very hard to see our country constantly being destroyed,” she told the AP.

One person was killed Sunday when a Russian guided bomb hit a village close to the border in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region, regional Gov. Oleh Hryhorov said.

Russia fired a total of 165 exploding drones and decoys overnight, Ukraine’s air force said. Of those, 69 were intercepted and a further 80 lost, likely having been electronically jammed. Russia also launched two ballistic missiles.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 13 Ukrainian drones overnight.

PUTIN henchman and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is "preparing to flee Russia" - as he has put his son in charge of the police.

The infamous leader of Chechnya has already made several moves to prepare for his escape - and his efforts have sparked a conflict with Kremlin cronies.

The 48-year-old dictator is a vocal supporter of Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, and has sent tens of thousands of troops to support the bloody war in Ukraine.

He has also been accused of violating human rights, including involvement in kidnapping and torture.

But relations between Putin and Kadyrov have soured in recent months, especially after alleged secret meetings between Kadyrov and Middle Eastern officials.

Local media reported that the Chechen ruler began "unsanctioned discussions" with officials from several Middle Eastern countries about his assets and family's future - without Moscow's approval.

The FSB security service officers informed a "furious" Putin, 72, about Kadyrov’s secret negotiations.

Kadyrov has reportedly already begun transferring assets abroad, with the leader's family recently acquiring properties in both Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

The Chechen leader spoke with "Muslim monarchies" who he has close ties with, according to IStories.

Putin likely sees this as a betrayal, even though Kadyrov sent troops from his private army when the Russian leader faced a coup bid from now-dead Wagner private army chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in June 2023.

After suffering from poor health, Kadyrov is hoping that his son will take over after him.

It is believed that the ruthless Kremlin-ally is suffering from severe kidney and pancreatic issues, as reported by Novaya Gazeta Europe.

But the brutal warlord does not trust that Putin will appoint his son as the next in line to rule Chechnya.

Kadyrov has appointed his 17-year-old son, Adam, as the head of the police, Chechen state media reported on Monday.

Reports said that the teenage boy had been appointed "curator" of the Chechen interior ministry.

Kadyrov has awarded his son multiple medals and appointed the teenager to a succession of posts, building him up as crown prince and heir apparent.

When Adam was aged 16, he was put in charge of his father’s security apparatus and given a leadership role at the Vladimir Putin University of Russian Special Forces, in Chechnya.

Leading investigative journalist Andrey Kalitin said Kadyrov senior’s health is now “very poor” with “tough decisions” over the succession imminent.

Kalitin said: “The Kremlin has two or three candidates.

“Ramzan Kadyrov has one. His name is Adam, he is 17 years old, he has more than 15 awards.”

Even if Putin appointed Adam, he would need a regency-style arrangement until he is 30 under Russian laws.

The boy won his father’s backing after he assaulted a prisoner accused of burning the Quran.

Kadyrov is believed to have amassed a vast fortune as a reward for taming war-riven Chechnya since taking over from his assassinated father.

Accused of human rights abuses, Kadyrov has boasted that he has been sanctioned more than anyone by the West.

Rumours have persisted that a bloated Kadyrov has “serious” pancreatic and kidney problems, with photos being carefully edited and never showing him below the chest.

The notorious leader also has a flashy online presence - last year he flaunted his Tesla with a machine gun bolted to its roof.

The Russian Republic of Chechnya is also known for buying Ukrainian prisoners of war and using them as bargaining chips for their own gain.

They buy captives from Russian military units, and use them in negotiations to swap with Chechen captives, according to RadioFreeEurope.

Kadrov's republic has also used POWs to get sanctions lifted.

In January 2024 Kadyrov offered to release 20 Ukrainian captives in exchange for the removal of US sanctions against his relatives and horses.

The speculation comes as NATO scrambled fighter jets after Putin unleashed a barrage of nuclear-capable bombers on Ukraine.

Russia struck central Kyiv as well as other location in brutal strikes which included kamikaze drones and ballistic missiles.