In this bulletin;
- Independent Senator Fatima Payman defends comments praising treatment of women in Iran.
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine hopes to see an end to the war this year.
- Alex de Minaur faces Croatian veteran Marin Cilic in the Dubai Tennis Championships.
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Ukrainian minister Olha Stefanishyna says the country is in the final stage of talks with the United States to sign a deal on critical minerals.
The deal is at the heart of Ukraine's bid to win US continued military support going forward.
Ukraine is marking the bleakest anniversary yet of its war against the Russian invasion, with the country's forces under severe pressure on the battlefield and the Trump administration apparently embracing the Kremlin in a reversal of US policy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine hopes to finish war this year, not in another three years - but any peace deal must be on just terms.
"We hope that we can finish this war this year - not in three years. If we speak about security, Russia they can come back in 10 years. They will not come back, if we put them to their place, to their territory. And if Ukraine will be in EU and in NATO - in closest years, of course, it will help us very much."
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Independent Senator Fatima Payman has defended comments in which she spoke glowingly of the treatment of women in Iran.
The West Australian senator spoke to the Iranian state-owned Press TV from an event in Western Sydney.
"The incredible place that Iran is, allowing women to participate in the workforce. Realities that we're not privy to, living here and listening to the propaganda that we receive with very single sided organisations with an agenda."
The senator's appearance at the Benevolent Iranian Women's Association was criticised by Iranian-Australian activists.
In response, she told SBS News the aim of the group "was to correct the narrative they felt was single-sided by certain organisations", and said it's important for her to "keep an open mind and listen to both sides."
Ms Payman has in the past supported the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement, which grew after the death of Mahsa Amini who was arrested by the so-called morality police for not correctly wearing a hijab.
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New Zealand's Defence Minister says they received little notice before Chinese live-fire drills in waters between Australia and New Zealand.
China's Ministry of Defence has accused Australia and New Zealand of deliberately overreacting to two live fire drills performed by the warships, which are currently around 280 nautical miles east of Tasmania.
A Chinese defence ministry spokesperson said Australia has made unreasonable accusations against China.
New Zealand's defence minister Judith Collins told Radio New Zealand the Chinese government was wrong to downplay their activity.
"So there was a warning to civil aviation flights that was basically a very short amount of notice -- a couple of hours as opposed to what we would consider best practice, which is 12 to 24 hours' notice so aircraft are not having to be quickly diverted when they're on the wing. So actually it is unusual and we are seeking assurance from the Chinese embassy around that."
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R&B singer Roberta Flack has died at the age of 88.
The four-time Grammy award winner was best known for her hit songs, 'The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face' and 'Killing Me Softly With His Song'.
Those titles won her Record of the Year trophies in 1973 and 1974, making her the first artist ever to win the honour two years back to back.
In a statement, her publicist says Ms Flack died peacefully, surrounded by her family.
No cause of death was given.
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In tennis, Alex de Minaur faces off against Croatian veteran Marin Cilic today in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
The resilient Cilic has been battling with knee trouble for two years but still managed to become the lowest-ranked player ever to win an ATP Tour title last year at the Hangzhou Open.
But the in-form de Minaur is well-favoured to win, with the world-number-eight on a collision course with fellow Australian Alexei Popyrin in a potential second round match-up later this week.
This comes after Popyrin, now at number 27 in the rankings, had a comfortable straight-sets win over Lebanese wildcard Hady Habib in his opening match.
It would be the first time he has had a chance to beat Alex de Minaur since he won the Canadian Open last September to claim his first ATP Masters 1000 title - an achievement that has so far eluded the career of de Minaur.
