Vladimir Putin will make a "very important" announcement on the war in Ukraine tomorrow, a Russian official has claimed.
The Russian president may make a statement during a series of events to mark 80 years since the siege of Leningrad - now St Petersburg - in World War 2, according to Vladimir Rogov.
Rogov, who was appointed by Russia to run the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, claimed Putin will make an important speech in St Petersburg tomorrow.
The pro-Putin official made the announcement on his Telegram channel, but there has been no official confirmation of the president's speech from the Kremlin yet.
Nearly 11 months after the Russian president ordered his forces to invade Ukraine, regional authorities are reportedly preparing for Putin's visit.
It comes after Russia sent a chilling warning saying that UK tanks being sent to Ukraine will "burn" on the battlefield.
"The special military operation will continue. These tanks are burning and will burn," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
The remarks followed the news that the British government would be sending a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks, in a move which made it the first Western power to supply Ukraine with main battle tanks.
Mr Peskov said: "They [UK] are using this country [Ukraine] as a tool to achieve their anti-Russian goals. These tanks are burning and will burn just like the rest."
In unfounded claims, he said the supply of tanks from "countries like Britain and Poland" would not impact the situation on the ground and would only bring "more troubles" to Ukraine.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the tanks were "the most significant package of combat to date to accelerate Ukrainian success."
A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: "The prime minister and President Zelensky welcomed other international commitments in this vein, including Poland’s offer to provide a company of Leopard tanks.
"The prime minister stressed that he and the whole UK government would be working intensively with international partners to deliver rapidly the kind of support which will allow Ukraine to press their advantage, win this war and secure a lasting peace.
“The leaders reflected on the current state of Russia's war in Ukraine, with successive Ukrainian victories pushing Russian troops back and compounding their military and morale issues.
"They agreed on the need to seize on this moment with an acceleration of global military and diplomatic support to Ukraine."
