welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines. more russian military hardware heads for the border, as separatists in the east, ask for help from the kremlin, in repelling what they claim is ukrainian aggression. ukrainian president vladimir zelensky prepares a state of emergency. preparing for an invasion, safety drills for the ukrainian people, while its troops, say they're ready to fight. i also afraid to be hurt or die here and that's why i stand here and try to do myjob

as possible to stay alive. also in the programme, also in the the week that changed the world — fifty years after us president richard nixon visited china, we look at the economic and political impact of those talks. and the stars of the long—awaited batman film have been out at a special screening of the film, which was delayed due to covid. hello and welcome to the programme. a state of emergency has come

into force across ukraine because of what the authorities called intensified aggression from russia. the measures will last for 30 days and will include extra security patrols, border checks, and a possible curfew. thousands of army reservists have been called up. it comes as russian separatists, who control the parts of ukraine around luhansk and donetsk, are reported to have asked the kremlin for help. within the last hour or so, ukraine's president volodymyr zelensky has appealed directly to the people of russia for peace, saying: "the possibility of war depends on you". we begin our coverage with this report from orla guerin — in the donbas region of eastern ukraine. more of moscow's military hardware on view today in the rostov region, close to the board with eastern ukraine. no movement here, but the fear is that russia is just biding its time before launching an invasion. and in ukraine, on the front

lines in avdiivka, they are combat ready. they have been fighting kremlin—backed separatists for eight years. lieutenant ivan says things are heating up. in this region, a lot of snipers. a lot of enemy using a lot of types of grenade launchers. it's also really heavy weapon. they can use it 2a hour per seven. now we are trying... ..like to stay in the shadows so if we have trenches, we move on with them. because the enemy also like to use drones. this destroyed hangar provides some cover from pro—moscow rebels. troops here call it the skeleton. we have been asked not to speak too loudly because russian

separatist fighters are very nearby, near enough to hear us. since we have been here, there has been shelling and this front line has been more active in recent days. there is a real sense now that this conflict is building. so, it was just two days ago, it is only two hits from the whole of firing into us. it was like 12 hits in this region... ivan, who is 30, knows that death could come raining down at any moment. i also think about it, it's very scary for me. as a simple guy, i'm also afraid to be hurt or die here. and that's why i'm stand here in the armour and try to do myjob as possible to stay alive. that's a daily battle. they scan for enemy snipers, who will also be scanning for them.

if russian troops invade ukraine, there could be many young men lost, on both sides. and for the very young here, lessons in survival. this is school nmber one in the town of druzhkivka, a practice run taking children down to the bomb shelter, packing them to the rafters. normally, it happens twice a year. today, an extra drill, as this nation faces a moment of grave danger. orla guerin in the donbas area of eastern ukraine. i'm joined now by our reporter mark lobel. he reporter mark lobel. has been keeping a close eye on he has been keeping a close eye on the latest development coming out of the story. mark, maybe you can talk us through the last past half hour for the president zelensky has made an address. ~ . ,

address. what did he say? in the last hour _ address. what did he say? in the last hourjust _ address. what did he say? in the last hourjust after- the last hourjust after midnight local time in ii midnight local time in 11 minute broadcast president zelensky address notjust minute broadcast president zelensky address not just the nation but beyond. he wanted to say that he now believes that russian troops have been approved for an offensive against ukraine, the message has gone to the troops to take part in an offensive against ukraine in the coming days, he said. he said he believes nearly 200,000 russian troops around the border now. and he could start his work, a major war in europe. he said he tried to phone president putin again on wednesday but the president hadn't responded. he was appealing in russian as well in this broadcast to russians who are listening to help. he said the possibility of war depends on you, appealing to russians who would be listening through social media channels. he conceded that it would be shown, his appeal and russian state tv but he wants to get the message out that way. this is a picture doing a pivot from him in the calming recent weeks to now predicting a conflict is

likely. said ukrainians were doing everything possible for peace but would defend their country if attacked. it comes at a busy day wear without three hours into a state of emergency in ukraine there was conscription of reservist announces well so thousands of reserves that could be called up. also, there were cyber attacks on the country it's been a bruising day for ukraine.— been a bruising day for ukraine. a ., been a bruising day for ukraine. ~ , ., ., ukraine. as you point out, a lot of activity _ ukraine. as you point out, a lot of activity happening - lot of activity happening there. it also continued focus on the tension in eastern ukraine. on the tension in eastern ukraine-— on the tension in eastern ukraine. , , ., ukraine. yes. if we show you the map _ ukraine. yes. if we show you the map of— ukraine. yes. if we show you the map of those _ ukraine. yes. if we show you the map of those two - ukraine. yes. if we show you the map of those two rebel l ukraine. yes. if we show you i the map of those two rebel held areas that president putin had declared independent, you can see the dividing line between the russian back control territory and the ukrainian territory, that's where the focus is on. if we can show you this letter, analyses as coming part of a russian playbook, if you like. it was written on the 22nd on tuesday but released on wednesday. it seems to be an

appeal from the leaders of those regions to ask for help, for russian military help for what they called repelling ukrainian aggression for the a war of words on both sides of who is accused of shelling this is seen as one of those signs as a reason why you may see russian troops coming into those areas shortly.- those areas shortly. mark labelle, _ those areas shortly. mark labelle, thank _ those areas shortly. mark labelle, thank you - those areas shortly. mark labelle, thank you for - those areas shortly. mark - labelle, thank you forjoining us on up to eight the programme. russia for one has been celebrating the day of the fatherland today. president putin who took the leading part in the commemoration says he is still open to direct dialogue with the west about ukraine but the west is increasingly sceptical with france and america refusing to hold talks with russians foreign ministers. 0ur correspondent caroline davies has this report from southern russia, near the border with donetsk.

singing. young voices singing old melodies. a song from the second world war, on a public holiday in honour of the armed forces. in rostov—on—don, close to the border with ukraine, there are different views on what is happening less than 100 kilometres away. "of course it is scary," tatiana tells me, "but what can we do? we can do nothing." alexander served in the russian fleet. "ukraine will stop shelling," he says, "and if they will not, as they said on tv, we will send in troops." as russia celebrates its military, the rest of the world is keeping a very close eye on what that military is doing, and its commander—in—chief, president putin, is keeping them guessing. there was wreath laying in moscow. president putin inspected the troops. he hasn't confirmed if he has already ordered any into ukraine.

translation: first, | i didn't say the troops would go straight there after our meeting and second, it's generally not possible to predict possible action, it depends on the situations that develop on the ground. but tonight the kremlin said that the two separatist regions had asked president putin to come in their words, assist in repelling the aggression of the ukrainian army. back at the border, the evacuation buses continue coming from the rebel—held areas. filling out paperwork, recent arrivals were feeling emotional about president putin's decision to recognise the areas they live in as independent. 74—year—old luba tells me that she had been waiting since the first day of the war for this decision. "how long can you hide in your basement from shelling," she says. translation: we hope that things will settle down - and there is no more war. do you want to be part of russia?

of course, we would like it because we love russia. 0utside, others wait in their cars. there is some concern about what this decision could mean. translation: we respect other countries and also respect - ukraine, because we used to live and study there, visited different cities, and have a lot of relatives from ukraine. so we wouldn't like the situation to develop into a conflict. the russian president has promised that this is a step towards peace. around the world, there are serious concerns that he has something else in mind. caroline davies, bbc news, in the rostov region of southern russia. i want to bring you some of the latest lines that we are getting on the story according to both reuters and the afp

news agencies. her hearing that the united nations security council will convene for it second emergency session in three days over the rushing ukraine crisis with the bats according to diplomatic sources on the ground. the meeting was requested by ukraine earlier and it's been backed by western security council members, is scheduled for the next few hours, we will be sure to keep you updated with the latest lines coming out of that meeting for the latest developments. do stay tuned for that. do stay tuned for that. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. the canadian prime minister, justin trudeau, has revoked emergency powers — invoked nine days ago that had been used to clear a mass protest against coronavirus restrictions from the capital, ottawa. mr trudeau said the crisis had been resolved and the emergencies act was no longer needed. the weeks—long protest was prompted by anger at a mandatory covid vaccination requirement to cross into the united states. madagascar has been hit by the fourth cyclone in a month.

aid workers say there has been more damage to houses, and there are fears of more flooding in areas which have not yet recovered from the earlier extreme weather. at least one journalist was killed and two others wounded when police opened fire on protestors in port—au—prince in haiti. the protestors are calling for a higher minimum wage than the one approved by the government earlier this week. the world health organization is setting up a new hub in south korea to help train low and middle—income countries to produce their own vaccines and therapies. the organisation also said five more countries — bangladesh, indonesia, pakistan, serbia and vietnam — will receive support from its mrna vaccine technology transfer hub in south africa. we believe the modern technology transfer holds huge promise, notjust for increasing access to vaccines against covid—i9, but also for other diseases including malaria,

tuberculosis and cancer. if you want to get in touch with me i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme, we'll tell you how a vampire has bagged the role of the famous caped crusader in the new batman film, which is about to be released. prince charles has chosen his bride. the prince proposed the lady diana spencer three weeks ago. she accepted, she says, without hesitation. as revolutions go, this had its fair share of bullets. a climax in the night outside the gates of mr marcos' sanctuary, malacanang, the name itself symbolising one of the cruellest regimes of modern asia. the world's first clone has been produced i of an adult mammal.

scientists in scotland i have produced a sheep called dolly using a cell from another sheep. i warren beatty and faye dunaway announced to the world that the winner of best film was la la land. the only trouble was it wasn't. the mistake was only put right in the middle of gushing speeches by the team behind the modern musical. not for 20 years have locusts been seen in this part of africa. some of the swarms have been ten miles long. this is the last time the public will see this pope. very soon, for the sake of the credibility and authority of the next pope, benedict xvi will, in his own words, be hidden from the world for the rest of his life. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore, our headlines. more russian military hardware heads for the border as separatists in the east ask for help from the kremlin in repelling what they claim

is ukrainian aggression. ukraine's president, volodymyr zelensky, appeals directly to the people of russia for peace as he declares a state of emergency. away from russia's military build—up, both moscow and kyiv are taking other steps in apparent preparations for a beginning of hostilities. russia says it will evacuate diplomatic personnel from ukraine. it says the measure is needed to "protect their lives". you can see here how quiet its embassy in kyiv was on wednesday. meanwhile, ukraine is to bring in compulsory military service for all men of fighting age. reservists are also being called up tojoin the regular army. here's our europe correspondent nick beake. with the freedom of his country in the balance, ukraine's most famous singer takes to the stage. an impromptu concert at the most perilous of times. he tells us the world should now offer its support.

the most important message is that ukraine is united. we are strong, we are optimistic and we are looking into the future with wide—open eyes and we shall overcome. there is no panic in the face of growing russian aggression. instead, a patriotic outpouring. these history students from kyiv university hope their armed forces will protect their future. i am not afraid. i think they will save us from this. we will fight for our nation, our city, our country. at this military charity, they send extra equipment to soldiers on the front line. thermal vision? they say the ukrainian public has donated the equivalent of half a million in the past 2a hours, more than the whole of last year.

this man promises ukrainians would fight until the last soldier and to the last civilian. it will not end well for russia, he says. victoria was the first woman in ukraine to serve as a front line commander before leaving active duty. the bullet went through? but now, 29 and a mum with a toddler, she has been called up, along with thousands of other reservists. translation: if this - is going to be a large-scale war with an attack on kyiv, my family will move away and i will stay here to do whatever the army needs me to do. in the heart of kyiv, they proudly display russian weaponry they say they captured during the last eight years of fighting in the east. these are the only russian tanks that most ukrainians will tolerate on the streets of the capital. you are really struck by the defiance here, but there is undoubtedly

growing unease, a fear that this long—running conflict with russia will soon move closer to home for millions more people. but for now, the theatres fill and the streets bustle. the city on alert, but not alarmed. it was the week that changed the world — or certainly the world as we knew it then. 50 years ago this week, the former us president, richard nixon visited china. the visit is remembered for an opening made possible by ping—pong matches between the us and china — and for the subsequent economic and political impact of the talks. we're joined now by professor margaret macmillan, author of "nixon and mao: the week that changed the world" — and a foreign policy scholar to put that event 50 years go into context. wonderful to have you on the programme. why don't we start by putting that event into

context, how significant was it at the time and the subsequent things that it put into motion? i think it was very significant. it was a diplomatic revolution. the united states and china to a very large country, the united states zoo bar, china not yet the power was going to be calm but nevertheless very important hadn't had any relationship since 1949 when the communists are taken over in china. by the mere fact that president nixon go to china it was quite doing not quite clear that something to change. there was an opening now between those two great powers. that of course made the soviet union different and it made a lot of other countries reflect about how the world to change. it was a tremendous moment. gradually it was can open up the possibilities for great investment, trade, cultural exchange between the two countries. we see the world today very much affected by what happened then.- today very much affected by what happened then. over the last 50 years _ what happened then. over the last 50 years or _ what happened then. over the last 50 years or so _ what happened then. over the last 50 years or so i _ what happened then. over the last 50 years or so i think- last 50 years or so i think it's fair to say there are been periods of real positive relations between the us and

china and also extremely tense at times. most recently under president trump. there always been a door open or a gateway to conversation into the relationship between the two sides. what do you think that is? i sides. what do you think that is? ~ , sides. what do you think that is? ~' , ., , ., is? i think they realise that they need _ is? i think they realise that they need to _ is? i think they realise that they need to deal - is? i think they realise that they need to deal with - is? i think they realise that| they need to deal with each other. they're both specific powers and they are competitors but they probably have more to gain, at least we hope that's what their leaders think of it they probably have more to gain by working with each other. they are each other�*s great trading partners, they have invested in each other, exchange technology and so through cooperation i think they can achieve a great deal. yes, there is rivalry, we have to hope that that doesn't take the place of this competition, this cooperation.— the place of this competition, this cooperation. when you look at the relationship _ this cooperation. when you look at the relationship today, - this cooperation. when you look at the relationship today, that i at the relationship today, that rivalry is taking place of that possible cooperation and certainly with some estimates that china will be the worlds largest economy and outpace the united states. how do you see

cooperation between these two competitors playing out? advocates can take a lot of goodwill on both sides, a lot of good leadership and diplomacy. what you have, and it's happened in the past, you have won power that is not as great as it once was an nuts united states, still a very powerful nation, the worlds greatest military power but not perhaps as dominant as it once was and you have a china which is asserting itself, seeing itself rising in the world. that's never easy. it can be managed, the united states and britain had a similar relationship at the end of the 19th century and the manager avoid a conflict. it is possible. i think we must be to present it to enact pessimistic and say they get class militarily.— and say they get class militaril . ., , ., , ., , ., militarily. fabulous to get you on the programme. _ militarily. fabulous to get you on the programme. thank- militarily. fabulous to get you j on the programme. thank you militarily. fabulous to get you - on the programme. thank you for your thoughts. the long awaited batman film starring robert pattinson in the dual role of gotham city's vigilante detective and his alter ego, reclusive billionaire bruce wayne — had a special screening in london on wednesday.

the film will be released next month after production was delayed due to covid. claudia redmond reports. music. what's black... ..and blue... ..and dead all over? stars of the latest superhero franchise, the batman, attended a special screening of the film at the bfi imax in london. laughter. i got you! robert pattison is following in the footsteps of christian bale, ben affleck, michael keaton and george clooney in the lead role of bruce wayne. the pressure was on to get into shape for the famous bulky batsuit, but hejoked that the training went further than that. people talk about you need to, like, work out all the time. really what you need to work out is your lips. laughter.

you know, you have to kind of... you have to work out, like, variations on a grimace, and everything's in your voice. it's so much more of a vocal part than i would ever have realised before. but, yeah, very satisfying. he wasjoined on the red carpet by costar zoe kravitz, who plays catwoman, and fellow british actor andy serkis, who's playing bruce wayne's loyal butler, alfred pennyworth. it's a beautifully written role in this version. it's slightly different to the way that alfred is normally portrayed in the sense that normally alfred and batman are kind of an ensemble and they're facing the foe together, but we actually meet him at a point of great tension. the killer left this for the batman. why is he writing to you? the reboot from director matt reeves focuses on the emotional connection between alfred and bruce wayne.

why are you leaving? selina, don't throw your life away. don't worry, honey, i got nine of them. i the new incarnation of the batman will be in the cinemas next month. claudia redmond, bbc news. before we go i want to remind you of the latest developments that russia, ukraine conflict. the meeting will be held in a few hours' time as a result of those escalating tensions between the two sides on the request of kyiv, i might add. ukraine's resident zelensky has appealed directly to the people of russia for p saying the possibility of war depends on you. he switched to the russian language in that address and said that 200,000 russian troops were massed on ukraine's border and had been ordered to move forward. he said he had again sought talks with vladimir putin but was met with silence. there's lots more for you on that story on our website. do make sure to have a look at that. we will also have a look at lots more on the story throughout the day on bbc news so do stay tuned for that.

thank you for watching newsday. hello there. high pressure's expected to build in across the country to end this week and into the weekend to settle things down, bring us some sunshine and lighter winds. but before that point, thursday looks very unsettled. it'll be cold and windy with sunshine and even wintry showers. now, the cold air�*s been moving in across the country during the overnight period behind this weather front, this band of rain, which is actually a cold front. it'll be lying across the south east of england and east anglia to start thursday morning. some heavy rain on that, bit of sleet on its back edge, but eventually it'll clear out during the mid to latter part of the morning, and then we're all into brighter skies, sunshine and blustery showers. these will be wintry across northern and western areas, particularly on the hills.

frequent snow showers across scotland, northern ireland, mixed in with thunder and lightning. also start off with an ice risk across northern scotland, too. it's going to be a windy day across the board, widespread gales across the northern half of the uk. and these temperatures much lower than they've been of late, 4—8 degrees across the south. factor in the wind, it'll feel even colder than those temperatures suggest. those showers with thunder and lightning and snow continue across the north of the uk during thursday night. the winds will start to turn light as a ridge of high pressure moves in, and that'll also help kill off some of the showers. temperature—wise, ranging from around freezing to five degrees across the south. so, you can see this ridge of high pressure building in for friday. it'll push the strong winds and the showers away from northern and eastern areas gradually through the day, so it could start quite windy across eastern england in towards the south east. one or two showers, but as that ridge of high pressure builds in, it'll settle things down, increasing amounts of sunshine, the winds falling lighter.

so, temperatures will respond. highs of around 10—11, maybe 12 degrees across the south. a touch higher across the north, too. so, that's friday, then, a fine picture. we hold onto our area of high pressure into the weekend as well, particularly for england and wales, but you'll notice these weather fronts starting to push into the far north and the west, particularly as we head on into sunday, so it will be going downhill there during part two of the weekend. so, plenty of dry weather around on saturday, particularly for england and wales. that lasts across england and wales on sunday, but it starts to turn breezier, cloudier and wetter across the north and the west.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour as newsday continues straight after hardtalk. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. black and white americans have always had vastly different experiences within their country's justice system. you see it in so many different data sets, from police violence to incarceration to sentencing. it's impossible to understand without reference to america's history of institutionalised racism. understanding it is one thing, the real challenge is how

to change it.