* Russian artillery bombarded residential districts of Ukraine's second largest city Kharkiv on Monday, killing at least 11 people, the city's mayor said, as Moscow's invading forces met stiff resistance on a fifth day of conflict.

* Talks on a ceasefire ended without a breakthrough. A member of the Ukrainian delegation said the discussions were difficult and the Russian side was biased.

* Russian President Vladimir Putin told France's Emmanuel Macron a Ukraine settlement was only possible if Kyiv was neutral, "de-nazified" and "demilitarised" and Russian control over annexed Crimea was formally recognised, the Kremlin said.

* The United States expects Russian forces to try to encircle Kyiv in the coming days and believe they could become more aggressive out of frustration with their slow advance on the Ukrainian capital, a senior US defence official said.

* The US has still not seen any "muscle movements" after Russian President Vladimir Putin's weekend announcement that he was putting his nuclear forces on high alert, a senior US defence official said. Earlier in the day, Russia's defence ministry said its nuclear missile forces and Northern and Pacific fleets had been placed on enhanced combat duty.

* Ukraine's Western allies increased weapons transfers in support, and Britain called for such aid to be expanded. Finland agreed to ship 2500 assault rifles and 1500 anti-tank weapons.

* Russia's foreign ministry said those supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine will bear responsibility should they be used during Russia's military campaign there. It said the steps taken by the EU against Russia would meet a harsh response.

* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed a letter formally requesting immediate membership of the European Union for Ukraine - a request unlikely to shorten the admission process, but an emphatic statement of commitment to Western values.

* The UN said more than 500,000 people have fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries since the start of Russia's invasion.

* The websites of several Russian media outlets were hacked on Monday, Reuters checks showed, with their regular sites replaced by an anti-war message and calls to stop President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

* The US on Monday imposed sanctions on Russia's central bank and other sources of wealth.

* Europe's financial market on Monday began severing Russia's ties to its critical plumbing for trading, clearing and settling securities as sanctions on Moscow started to bite.

* The Russian rouble fell to record lows on Monday while world stocks slid and oil prices jumped, as the West ramped up sanctions. Steps included blocking banks from the SWIFT global payments system.

* Russia's central bank more than doubled its key policy rate on Monday and introduced some capital controls as the country faced deepening economic isolation. Its governor said sanctions had stopped it selling foreign currency to prop up the rouble.

* Airlines on Monday braced for a potentially lengthy dispute after the European Union banned Russian airlines from its airspace and Moscow responded in kind, barring carriers from 36 countries including all 27 members of the EU.

* Britain ordered its ports to block any vessels that are Russian-flagged or believed to be registered, owned or controlled by any person connected with Russia.

* Energy giant BP, global bank HSBC and the world's biggest aircraft leasing firm AerCap joined a growing list of companies looking to exit Russia.

* Sporting bodies acted to bar Russian athletes from competing in international events, with FIFA and UEFA suspending Russia's national teams and clubs from international football. The move makes it likely Russia will be excluded from this year's FIFA World Cup and the women's Euro 2022 tournament.

QUOTES

* "I took a train from Kyiv to Lviv to a point where the taxi put us. I walked the last 50 kilometres," a Ukrainian woman said on arrival at a border crossing with Poland in snowy freezing weather.

Australian Associated Press