Putin to place Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus

An aerial view of Bakhmut, the site of heavy battles with Russian troops in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Sunday.

Libkos/AP

Here’s a look ahead and a roundup of key developments from the past week.

What to watch

The United Nations Security Council is due to convene for an emergency meeting, called by Ukraine, after Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed plans to place tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

Russia takes over the U.N. Security Council’s rotating presidency in April.

The United States hosts the Summit for Democracy this week, including a virtual gathering featuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Hungary’s parliament has just ratified Finland’s application to join NATO. Now that leaves Turkey, whose president said it would start the process to ratify Finland’s bid. But both NATO members have left Sweden’s application still pending.

The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, plans to visit the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine to assess the security situation at Europe’s largest nuclear station.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov holds talks with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian on Wednesday. Lavrov is also due to talk with the foreign minister of another of Russia’s friends, Nicaragua, on Thursday.

Ukraine has been pushing for phone talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week.

What happened last week

China’s Xi paid a three-day visit to Russia. Putin said the Chinese government’s peace plan could form the “basis” of an eventual deal “when the West and Ukraine are ready.”

Putin announced plans to station tactical nuclear…