welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines... the west steps up economic pressure on russia, as russian forces continue to shell civilian areas in ukraine. on the front line, north—west of the capital kyiv, ukrainian soldiers are digging in, with russian forces circling the city. there is a tangible fear in this place that that russian offensive which has been stalled may be ready to regain momentum. the russians are not very far from here. america bans imports of russian oil and gas, as britain and the eu also target moscow's energy exports.

we are enforcing the most significant economic sanctions package in history and it's causing significant damage to russia's economy. significant damage to russia's econom . �* ~ ,, and a standing ovation in the house of commons, for president zelensky — who tells british mps that ukraine will never surrender. live from our studio in singapore. this is bbc news. it's newsday. welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. we begin with the latest from the humanitarian crisis in ukraine. civilians who've been trapped in besieged towns and cities have been scrambling for safety after a temporary ceasefire held in some places. convoys of vehicles streamed out of the northeastern city of sumy — and people trapped just north of the capital kyiv

were also allowed to leave. but efforts to evacuate civilians from the besieged southern ukrainian port of mariupol have failed for a fourth day. this map shows the areas — here in red — where russian forces are present, but not necessarily in control. russian troops advancing towards the capital have been slowed down by attacks from ukrainian forces and hampered by serious logistical problems. but they are now believed to be preparing for an assault on kyiv. jeremy bowen is in the capital kyiv. not many days might be left for civilians escaping the fighting north—west of kyiv. on the way out of irpin towards the capital and along this section of the front, there were signs that a bigger battle is coming. since the war started, they've been treating the wounded at a hospital about two miles

from the russian positions. these are the men whose resistance blunted their initial offensive. "i've still got two legs," he said. "they'll fix me up, and i'll fight on." the hospital director said this was the third world war. the russian people understand only the language of the power. nothing more. it is impossible to negotiate with the men who came to kill you. by this morning, they were getting ready to abandon the hospital. the director said, "my ship is sinking, and i'll "be the last to leave." you have the strong feeling here that they're preparing for the worst. packing up the medical equipment, the patients have been evacuated, the russians are not very far away. there's a tangible fear in this place that that russian offensive, which has been stalled, may be ready to regain momentum and start moving closer to the capital.

but around here, the ukrainians are still holding the russians. a few traces of old lives are left, where families cook their food and the dogs waiting for owners who may never return. it was a lonely and tense drive back to kyiv. ukrainian troops are dug into the woods waiting. we gave a lift to a couple who'd left their front line village after 13 days and nights in a shelter. "it used to be such a lovely place," she said. "now there's no house, no street and no village." ukrainian soldiers were strengthening a blocking position at a strategic crossroads. dragan, their commander, issuing a stream of orders, radiated urgency. they weren't wasting any time. you could see the pressure.

"we're here to destroy the enemy brigades," he said. "the occupiers who have come to our country and are heading our way." back in kyiv, the checkpoints are looking more like barricades. they're using the days to prepare for whatever�*s next. civilians are turning out for weapons training. lesson over, the guns are returned. these are not would be front line soldiers, at least not yet. i believe that during these times, we just learn to be ready. that is what i think. we just learn because, like, we can be scary after that, when it is ending. but right now, we just need to do ourjob and what we can right now. everyone i've met here says they're ready to resist. the russians so far

have moved slowly. the capital's respite might not last much longer. jeremy bowen, bbc news, kyiv. president biden has confirmed a complete us ban on russian oil, gas and coal imports. he says, the move means the "american people will deal another powerful blow" to putin's leadership. despite mounting fears of rising gas prices, the move has widespread bipartisan political support in the us. the united states is targeting the main artery of russia's economy. we are banning all imports of russian oil and gas and energy. that means russian oil will no longer be acceptable at us ports, and the american people will deal another powerful blow to putin's war machine. this is a move that has strong bipartisan support in congress and i believe in the country. america have rallied to support the ukrainian people and made it clear we will not be part

of subsidising puin�*s war. —— clear we will not be part of subsidising putin's war. claudio galimberti is the senior vice president of analysis at rystad energy, an independent energy research and business intelligence. hejoins us from houston, texas. it's great to get you on the programme. let's start by looking at the immediate reaction to that decision by the united states on energy prices. what are we looking at? . ~ energy prices. what are we looking at? ., ~ , ., energy prices. what are we looking at? . ~' , ., , energy prices. what are we looking at? ., ~ , ., , . energy prices. what are we looking at? ., ~ , . ., at? thank you very much and good evenina. at? thank you very much and good evening- we _ at? thank you very much and good evening. we are _ at? thank you very much and good evening. we are looking _ at? thank you very much and good evening. we are looking at - at? thank you very much and good evening. we are looking at prices i evening. we are looking at prices increasing quite a lot today, just before the announcement, but the rate during the announcement, the prices taper off a little bit, so i guess that has to do specifically with the biden administration not expecting the european countries to

follow suit, that's probably the most important piece of the announcement today.- most important piece of the announcement today. yes, but we understand _ announcement today. yes, but we understand that _ announcement today. yes, but we understand that the _ announcement today. yes, but we understand that the uk _ announcement today. yes, but we understand that the uk and - announcement today. yes, but we understand that the uk and the i announcement today. yes, but we | understand that the uk and the eu have announced plans at least to start phasing out their dependence on russian energy. how significant is that decision given that, you know, they depend so much on the source of energy?— source of energy? that's very significant — source of energy? that's very significant coming _ source of energy? that's very significant coming the - source of energy? that's very| significant coming the phasing source of energy? that's very - significant coming the phasing out is the most important piece of the information there. so it's going to take time before the european union can phase out its dependence on russia oil. currently, the european countries import 1m, a5 a russia oil. currently, the european countries import a.i, a5 a day, that's a lot. that's 30% of the european, so we are talking about huge numbers. at the european union was to ban immediately these barrels

today, we would be in a tremendous energy crisis. we would have a huge shortage of oil. the oil prices would really skyrocket from here. you have talked us through the impact our potential impact on the countries that buy oil and gas from russia. but these decisions, the decision from the united states, what kind of impact will it have on russia's economy, given that it's making this move to ban imports? i making this move to ban imports? i think that the vast majority of the impact already occurred to some extent when the biden administration enacted sanctions against russia right in the aftermath of the invasion. that's because what we saw is that traders and economic started to shy away from russian oil. that's arty happening. but there is a

difference between not taking the risk of dealing with russian oil and actually it's being illegal to deal with russian oil. today the biden administration said the united states cannot import russian oil, but the united states does not import from its not been importing a lot of oilfrom import from its not been importing a lot of oil from russia. therefore, the decision right now by the biden administration is a relatively minor impact, but when the european union and european countries decide to follow suit at some point, remember what i said earlier, the phasing out is the most important piece of information. that could generate a huge dislocation in the market because the european union has been importing a whole lot of oil from russia, depends heavily on russia and it's going to take time and resources in order to redirect the trade routes from russia to other countries, potentially china and india, and the middle east will need to play a role here as much as the united states in order to export

barrels into the european union. senior vice president, thank you for joining us on the programme. thank ou ve joining us on the programme. thank you very much- _ the severe sanctions imposed on russia mean the economy is collapsing. more and more household names are halting trade in russia and blocking access to goods and services — mcdonalds and coca cola are the latest. despite the risks — anti war sentiment is being expressed in protests across the country and there is a sense that the war is not going as russia had planned. today the bbc resumed reporting in russia, after it was temporarily suspended at the end of last week, over concerns surrounding a new law passed by the russian parliament. our moscow correspondent steve rosenberg reports. women's day — it's one of russians' favourite holidays, but this year's felt subdued and tense. moscow police out in force to prevent protests

at what russia's doing in ukraine. and from the kremlin, a request for russian women to support the offensive. translation: i want to say this to mothers, wives, - sisters and girlfriends of our soldiers and officers in battle, who are defending russia in this special military operation. i understand how worried you must be about your loved ones. you should be proud of them, like the whole country is. what the whole country isn't is fully behind the kremlin's decision to send in the troops. this was st petersburg on women's day. the sign says, "stop sending our soldiers to their deaths". many russians, though, do believe the kremlin line that this is not a war,

but an operation to protect russia. i ask anna and olga — how much do they support putin? "100%. no, 200%," she says. "he's doing the right thing, and that's what we've told our children." that is exactly what vladimir putin wants the public to think. the kremlin is doing everything it can at home to control the narrative about what's happening in ukraine. virtually all independent russian news outlets have been either blocked or shut down, and the new law has made it a criminal offence to spread what the authorities deem to be "fake news" about the russian armed forces, punishable by up to 15 years in prison. controlling the narrative becomes harder when multinationals like coca—cola are suspending operations.

mcdonald's, too. the fast—food giant employs 62,000 staff here. he already destroyed russian reputation, he already destroyed russian nation... maria baronova fears for russia's future. she's left state broadcaster rt, in protest at what russia's doing in ukraine. yeah, yeah, no, the russian economy is dead, everything is dead. it's the end, it's the end. it's like the death of your very close relative now. it was a big love of my life, russia, and now it is dead as well. on this special day, no celebration. instead, concern over what most of the world calls "a war", and what the kremlin calls "an operation". steve rosenberg reporting for us and russia.

—— steve rosenberg reporting for us in russia. well as the fighting continues — poland says it is ready to deploy all its mig—29 jets to the ramstein air base in germany and place them "at the disposal" of the us government. i'm joined now by robert person, professor of international relations at the us military academy, west point — who's speaking to us in a personal capacity. great to get you on the programme. in the first instance, if i could just get your assessment of how you think either side is doing at this point in time in terms of achievements or progress in the war? certainly. the last couple of weeks really have been a surprise because i'm the one hand, it seems clear that russia's forces are significantly underperforming in their attacks on ukraine. they are not achieving the objectives that were expected of them, and simultaneously, ukraine's military forces have been fighting much more

effectively with greater determination, resolve and resilience. then i think many people on the outside expected. they are certainly fighting better than vladimir putin expected and we are seeing that, you know, in their success so far in halting some of the major offensives towards kyiv and other cities.— the major offensives towards kyiv and other cities. what do you make ofthe and other cities. what do you make of the announcement _ and other cities. what do you make of the announcement from - and other cities. what do you make of the announcement from poland i of the announcement from poland today that it's ready to hand over these russian—made fighterjets to these russian—made fighterjets to the united states? will that make any difference because mike is that any difference because mike is that a option? any difference because mike is that a otion? , ., , , any difference because mike is that aotion? , ., , , , ., a option? obviously in terms of material capabilities, _ a option? obviously in terms of material capabilities, ukraine l a option? obviously in terms of| material capabilities, ukraine is still at a significant disadvantage relative to russia and there are signs that russia's beginning to really bring in some of its heavy forces and seeks the destruction of ukrainian cities. so i think any bit of aid, and a bit of firepower certainly is welcomed by the ukrainians and certainly will make a

difference, whether it will be enough to make a difference to turn the russian invasion is an open question. the russian invasion is an open cuestion. �* , , the russian invasion is an open cuestion. �*, , .,~ the russian invasion is an open cuestion. �*, , ., the russian invasion is an open cuestion. �*, , , question. let's 'ust take a step back here — question. let'sjust take a step back here shallowly _ question. let'sjust take a step back here shallowly and - question. let'sjust take a step back here shallowly and get. question. let'sjust take a step back here shallowly and get a i question. let'sjust take a step - back here shallowly and get a sense of what president putin actually wants. what would it take to get him to stop? wants. what would it take to get him to sto - ? ~ . wants. what would it take to get him tosto?~ . to stop? what putin has sought in ukraine for— to stop? what putin has sought in ukraine for the _ to stop? what putin has sought in ukraine for the last _ to stop? what putin has sought in ukraine for the last eight - to stop? what putin has sought in ukraine for the last eight years i ukraine for the last eight years since the invasion in 201a is essentially to create a russian sphere of influence across the former soviet states. a place where moscow has a privilege seat at the domestic political table of every single country around it. that's what i think he is after in ukraine, and it's something that he's failing to achieve. when he began this work, it was clear, he's even stated publicly that his goal was that regime change, diverse the democratically elected government of volodymyr zelensky out of power and

to replace it with a government that is conducive to russian interest. they clearly are in for a fight that they didn't expect, and i think we can only conclude at this point that regardless of how this war ends, it will be a strategic disaster for russia. ., , ., ~ , ., will be a strategic disaster for russia. .,, ., ~ i. will be a strategic disaster for russia. ., ~ . russia. robert, thank you so much for “oininu russia. robert, thank you so much forjoining us— russia. robert, thank you so much forjoining us on — russia. robert, thank you so much forjoining us on the _ russia. robert, thank you so much forjoining us on the programme i russia. robert, thank you so much l forjoining us on the programme with your thoughts. forjoining us on the programme with your thoughts-_ history was made at westminster earlier — when members of the house of commons watched a live address — by video link — by a foreign leader. president zelensky of ukraine asked the uk to recognise russia as a terrorist state and appealed for more help to make the skies above ukraine safe. our political correspondent jonathan blake was watching. showing solidarity with ukraine, as the country fights russian invaders, westminster extended an honour never shown to a foreign leader. president. applause. mps and peers rose to their feet for president volodymyr zelensky

to address them in the commons chamber. applause. translation: on day one, at a o'clock in the morning, j we were attacked by cruise missiles. everybody woke up — people, children, the entire ukraine — and since that, we have not been sleeping. he recounted ukraine's struggle day by day, and thanked the uk for its support, even if it didn't go as far as the military help he'd wanted. translation: we did feel that, | unfortunately, the alliances don't work properly always and the no—fly zone cannot be enforced. the president echoed shakespeare and churchill and was adamant his country would endure. translation: we will not give up, and we will not lose. _ we will fight till the end, at sea, in the air. we will continue fighting

for our land, whatever the cost. applause. from all sides, admiration and calls to action, in response. we will employ every| method that we can — diplomatic, humanitarian. and economic — mr speaker, until vladimir putin has failed. labour stands for the unity at home and abroad that will isolate the putin regime. a rare moment of unity, charged with emotion. a moment of history nobody here will forget. jonathan blake, bbc news, westminster. polls have opened in south korea's presidential election, after a tightly contested race that's been dominated by smear campaigns between the two main candidates. it's a neck and neck race between the governing democratic party's candidate — lee jae—myung and his conservative opposition rival, yoon suk yeol of the people power party both vying to succeed the incumbent

president moonjae—in, who is constitutionally unable to seek re—election. i'm joined now byjeongmin kim — from the analysis firm korea risk group. shejoins me from seoul. wonderful to have you on the programme. let'sjust wonderful to have you on the programme. let's just start by getting a sense of how this election has been described in south korea. what are people telling you? it was like he 'ust what are people telling you? it was like hejust said, _ what are people telling you? it was like he just said, a _ what are people telling you? it was like hejust said, a personality- like hejust said, a personality election, a lot of mudslinging, hatred fuelled campaigning from both sides will stop so people were getting exhausted with the entire election, period, although there were some great policies from both sides, but the focus was very much on the scandals from both family members, spouses, kids, hence it was one of the most uninspiring elections in south korean history and it comes from how much of the support for the conservative candidate initially largely come

from the discontents towards the incumbent administration itself and hatred towards the party and played a big part in impeachment. to start for the democratic party supporters were also not smooth. that's the primary result. did not make everybody happy. all in all, just party politics logic drove the entire campaign season which exhausts the voters.- entire campaign season which exhausts the voters. ~ ., ., ., exhausts the voters. what would have been some of— exhausts the voters. what would have been some of the _ exhausts the voters. what would have been some of the main _ exhausts the voters. what would have been some of the main election - been some of the main election issues, in particularfor young issues, in particular for young people issues, in particularfor young people who i know are quite a deciding factor in this election. for the younger generations, gender issues where one of the biggest talking points when it comes to their support for either candidates. but for general public economic policies such as real estate, housing, where the most important to it seems, but notjust policies themselves but also the transparency of pursuing these pledges were also

at the heart of the debate because there were corruption allegations in both camps. for younger generations of course, the gender divide was one of course, the gender divide was one of the biggest things because the misogyny and feminism, anti—feminism, all of these things both campaigns used, especially until the final few weeks of the election for them to gather supporters. north korea, outsiders often presume it's not a mean issue but has been a recurring theme for these candidates, they use to strengthen their image of charismatic leadership. strengthen their image of charismaticleadershi. ., charismatic leadership. thank you so much forjoining _ charismatic leadership. thank you so much forjoining us _ charismatic leadership. thank you so much forjoining us on _ charismatic leadership. thank you so much forjoining us on the _ charismatic leadership. thank you so i much forjoining us on the programme with all the latest analysis on that story for assignees day. back to our main story now. the united nations says more than two million people have now fled ukraine since the start of the russian invasion. the head of the un refugee agency has called it the fastest—growing refugee crisis in europe since world war two. our eastern european correspondent sarah rainsford

was at poltava train station, southwest of kharkiv, as hundreds of people evacutated out of the town sumy. these are some of the almost 600 sentience students who have been evacuated from sumy tonight. they are now rushing to get on the trains. these are evacuations trains that will take them west and eventually beyond that out of this country. people are tinyjust how anxious they are, very worried, living underfire and sumy anxious they are, very worried, living under fire and sumy itself all of that time, trapped in the city, unable to get out until the safe corridor was operated. for the first time, civilians had been evacuated from the ukrainian city they are being besieged by russian troops. it's pretty chaotic scenes here, people are very worried. these are sentience students, but they're also thousands of ukrainian civilians have been evacuated on that convoy of buses that has brought them here in south from

sumy. all of them, as i say, extremely relieved, had an extremely anxious few weeks, but finally... this ladyjust anxious few weeks, but finally... this lady just asked anxious few weeks, but finally... this ladyjust asked me where this train is going, she is trying to get on board as well. this is a train heading to the west of ukraine which is the main point where people who are across ukraine now have been flooding, one of the safest cities in this country at the moment. sarah rainsford reporting _ in this country at the moment. sarah rainsford reporting on _ in this country at the moment. sarah rainsford reporting on that - rainsford reporting on that story for us. a reminder of our top stories for you right before we end the programme. the united states, britain and the european union have announced plans to target russia's energy sector in

good afternoon. it was a chilly start for many with blue skies, but the blue skies have been eroded. a weather front�*s moving in off the atlantic, and that's true, really, of the rest of the week. it'll often be quite windy as well, turning a little milder with winds coming in generally from a southerly direction, but there will be some rain around, and it will primarily be in western areas because we still have high pressure influencing our weather further east. so, those weather fronts tend to weaken as they bump into that area of high pressure. nevertheless, quite a bit of cloud has moved in across the western side of the uk. some heavy bursts of rain expected across parts of western scotland, for example. if it brightens later in northern ireland, we'll see some sharp showers coming in here, and we'll see some sunshine continuing further east. but it's a breezy day, not a windy day throughout, and it was a chilly start,

so it does feel pretty chilly if you're not in the sunshine out there. and that will be notable across the western side, where we've got more cloud. now, through the evening and overnight, this weatherfront will continue its progress eastwards, but it will weaken. there could be some snow temporarily over the scottish mountains, but what it does is provide a blanket of cloud, and with the breeze continuing, it means most places should be largely frost—free. but you can see towards morning, we've got more wetter weather working its way into northern ireland, wetter and windier weather. but as i say, quite a different night. much milder than the one that hasjust gone. and that's because we'll have more cloud to start even in eastern areas first thing, but this draws the attention. some fairly hefty and persistent rain coming in across the western side of the uk. with it, we've got that milder, slightly milder atlantic air coming in as well. and that's a theme really for the rest of the week, although you'll notice some cold air does dig in later. but gale—force winds again pestering many western and northern areas. it'll be a breezy day further east blowing some holes in the cloud, where it could be quite sunny in eastern parts of england.

but further west, heavier, quite persistent rain for much of the day, potentially parts of scotland, northern ireland, western england and wales. but it's a mild breeze that's blowing in, and it should fall a little bit lighter later in the day towards the north, where the risk of snow increases, the southern uplands, the highlands and the grampians. that weather front starts to meander a little bit further eastwards, but it mayjust weaken into a band of cloud. some uncertainty, but what we will find is the winds drop light for a time on thursday morning and there could be some fog to watch out for. and then there's more rain to come as we move into friday.

this is bbc news, the headlines... the us has banned all imports of russian oil and gas in retaliation for russia's invasion of ukraine. the uk, too, says it will phase out russian oil imports by the end of the year, and the eu says it will cut its use of russian gas by two thirds by the end of 2022. in russia, more protests against the war, despite the threat of prison. more companies are halting trade in russia. mcdonald's and coca cola are the latest. after days of shelling in the north—eastern city of sumy, a temporary ceasefire has allowed residents to leave. but efforts to evacuate civilians from the besieged port of mariupol have failed for a fourth day. and ukraine's president volodymyr zelensky has become the first foreign leader to address britain's parliament, receiving a standing ovation.