Kremlin

White House spokesperson John Kirby said the administration was still collecting information about the case and had no comment yet.

Belarus, the Kremlin's closest ally, initially supported the Russian invasion, opening its borders to Russian troops marching on Ukraine's capital Kyiv.

Kyiv has been pushing Berlin to supply it with the Taurus, a missile with a range of more than 500 kilometres that is fired from fighter jets such as the Tornado, the F-15 or the F-18.

Zelensky has said he hopes the talks will lead to a peace summit of global leaders to endorse principles in his plan for a settlement.

The Kremlin believes that the poisoning was caused by cyanide pills and pesticides that were placed near the food plates.

Peskov said Russia's event would be crucial to be able to discuss grain supplies and what he called Moscow's responsible behavior and efforts to support world markets.

The Kremlin also denied on Monday that Russian forces had struck a cathedral in the Ukrainian city of Odesa.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was responding to a question about NATO member Turkey's decision to lift its opposition to Sweden joining the alliance on the eve of a two-day NATO summit in Lithuania

One thing is clear: Russia is no banana republic, nor some weak-kneed state – at least when it comes to security, that is.

According to preliminary information, there were no casualties or damage.