U.S. President Joe Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin's threat to use nuclear weapons is the biggest such threat since the Cuban Missile Crisis, as Russia's military leadership faced a rare domestic public backlash over the war in Ukraine.

CONFLICT

* Biden, commenting on Putin's threat to use nuclear weapons, said the United States was "trying to figure out" the Russian leader's off-ramp.

* A missile attack on the city of Zaporizhzhia in the southern region of the same name left some people buried under the rubble, the regional governor said, and was a reminder of Moscow's ability to strike targets even at a time when its forces have been pushed back in the south and east.

* A Russian-backed official in Ukraine publicly criticised President Vladimir Putin's "generals and ministers" for failing to understand the problems on the front lines.

* Ukraine's armed forces have advanced up to about 55 km (34 miles) over the last two weeks in a counteroffensive against Russian forces in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine, a Ukrainian general said. Reuters could not independently verify the remarks.

ENERGY

* International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi said the U.N. nuclear watchdog considered the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to be a Ukrainian facility.

* A crime scene investigation of the damages on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines has strengthened suspicions of "gross sabotage", Swedish security police said.

* Norway said it would impose limits on Russian fishing vessels using its ports, in a further tightening of security following last week's leaks in the pipelines.

RAMIFICATIONS

* Putin said he expected sanctions pressure on the Russian economy to intensify, in televised remarks from a meeting with government officials.

* The Kremlin denied reports that 700,000 Russians have fled the country since the announcement of a mobilisation drive to call up hundreds of thousands to fight in Ukraine.

* U.S. intelligence agencies believe parts of the Ukrainian government authorised a car bomb attack near Moscow in August that killed Darya Dugina, the daughter of a prominent Russian nationalist, the New York Times reported.

Reuters