tv BBC News at Six BBC News March 14, 2022 6:00pm-6:31pm GMT
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today at six... russia continues its bombardment of ukraine's major cities, despite the two sides holding another round of talks. the another round of talks. sirens have gone off here, is the sirens have gone off here, which is why we are having to broadcast in the dark. the assault closes in on the dark. the assault closes in on the capital, kyiv, with other areas also coming under russian attack. at least one person died and others were taken to hospital after this apartment block was struck. this is the nightmare for the city — more attacks like this. and, of course, they're vulnerable to missile strikes. but kyiv is big and it's sprawling, and the defenders have many advantages, which they're using.
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scenes of devastation in the southern port city of mariupol — where food, water and heating are said to have become increasingly scarce. and a pregnant woman wounded in the russian bombing of a maternity hospital there is reported to have died, along with her baby. also tonight, talks take place between china and the us, after american intelligence suggests russia has asked china for military help in the war against ukraine. the government announces a new sponsorship scheme to enable people in the uk to offer a home to refugees escaping from ukraine. and in other news, two years since the first lockdown, the uk scraps all covid travel restrictions. and coming up on the bbc news channel: another loss for defending champions england at the cricket world cup. their hopes of staying in the tournament hang in the balance, after losing to south africa.
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good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six, live from lviv, in western ukraine. russia is continuing to bombard ukraine as it closes in on the capital, kyiv. at least one person died and 12 people were injured following a russian air strike on a block of flats in the obolon district in the north of the city. as the violence continues, talks between russian and ukrainian representatives will resume again tomorrow, after a fourth round of discussions ended without a breakthrough. jeremy bowen has the latest from kyiv. the attack happened not long before dawn. it could have been worse for the residents, many had gone to the shelters. kyiv is feeling the pressure
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of the war much more sharply. "it's a tragedy, and he's an idiot," he said, meaning putin. "i ask the whole world to help," said yelena, "to make these nonhumans disappear from our ukraine." survival can be about saving a few precious things, as well as a life. kyiv�*s defenders are trying to keep russian artillery out of range, but this was a missile, fired from further away and much harder to stop. they're also very powerful. the explosion took lives and destroyed more ukrainian homes. this is the nightmare for the city, more attacks like this. and, of course, they're vulnerable to missile strikes. but kyiv is big and it's sprawling, and the defenders have many advantages, which they're using.
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prayers aren't all they have. problems for the russians include rivers — notjust the mighty dnipro running through kyiv, but its tributaries and large areas of marshland that can hold up and bog down armies. at their headquarters, the generals running kyiv�*s defence invited us to their war room. and they sounded confident, like their president. they're tracking the two main russian thrusts — from the east and from the north—west — which they say are being attacked and have barely moved. we've heard a lot about this russian, long russian convoy that was to the north—west of the city. what's happened to that? he answered, "that was a week ago. our military hit it, they moved a bit, but they never did anything that we felt in kyiv." what do you think the russians
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actually want to do with this city? do they want to come into the city and conquer it, or do they want to encircle it? "maybe they want to encircle the city," he said, "but i don't think they have enough soldiers. and they understand that in kyiv, around 20,000 people have been given weapons and the city's fortified. an attack would cost them very large losses." as we were talking, another missile exploded not far from the first one. it might have been brought down by air defence. a trolleybus conductor was killed. ukrainian military success has surprised their friends and their enemies, but the russians have not turned anything like their full force on this capital city yet. jeremy bowen, bbc news, kyiv. the latest there from the capital,
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kyiv. and a reminder that we are having to broadcast in the dark because the air sirens have just gone off and we are required to dim the lighting. an evacuation convoy has managed to leave the key port of mariupol, in the south of the country, which has been subjected to heavy russian bombardment. 160 cars were able to leave the city. it's been cut off from food, water and heating systems for more than two weeks. the city's authorities say that civilian deaths have risen above 2,100, and mass graves have had to be dug. today, it was reported that a pregnant woman, who was pictured fleeing after an attack on the city's maternity hospital last week, has died, along with her baby. from southern ukraine, andrew harding reports. a drone�*s—eye view of a city in agony, mariupol burning. apartment blocks in ruins after two weeks of unrelenting russian bombardments.
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there is no drinking water and any medication. also, for today, there is nowhere we can find food. we saw people who died because of lack of medication. and there were many people inside mariupol who were killed or injured and they are just lying on the ground. and today, we learned that among the dead is the woman on the stretcher in this now infamous picture. it was taken in the immediate aftermath of a russian attack last week on a maternity hospital in mariupol. her name is not known. it's understood she begged medics to let her die, if that would help them save her unborn child. both died this weekend. as for the living, this was reportedly filmed yesterday in a cellar in mariupol.
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"the planes are flying overhead," she says, "dropping bombs, scaring the children. please organise a humanitarian corridor to help our children escape." but so far, there is no safe passage out of mariupol. it's about two sides that need to come to the same terms. they need to find together an agreement. and if that doesn't happen? well, if that doesn't happen, knowing already how dire the situation is for the population inside the city, we can only be extremely concerned for the life of all those people. mariupol is a big, important city, and the russians need to capture it to help their advance here into southern ukraine. and their tactics are becoming brutally familiar. if you can't seize a city, then simply flatten it, whatever the cost in human lives. and so, the pounding of mariupol goes on. a city of half a million people
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trapped in a nightmare. andrew harding, bbc news, in southern ukraine. let's speak to our chief international correspondent lyse doucet, in kyiv. we are having to broadcast in the dark because of the sirens. we have 'ust seen dark because of the sirens. we have just seen scenes _ dark because of the sirens. we have just seen scenes of _ dark because of the sirens. we have just seen scenes of devastation in i just seen scenes of devastation in mariupol and the russian assault is getting closer to kyiv. what getting closer to kyiv. what hope for ukraine? _ getting closer to kyiv. what hope for ukraine? well, it _ getting closer to kyiv. what hope for ukraine? well, it is _ getting closer to kyiv. what hope for ukraine? well, it is perhaps l getting closer to kyiv. what hope. for ukraine? well, it is perhaps an appropriate metaphorfor the for ukraine? well, it is perhaps an appropriate metaphor for the darkest of dark times and today, yes, we are seeing images from the darkest of places here and across ukraine. a places here and across ukraine. a place where conditions have been described as apocalyptic. and now we are seeing the images from neighbourhoods where people used to live and work where children went to school, where they played in the streets, and now they are black and smouldering shells, after coming
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under incessant russian shelling for the past two weeks. a place where people have been starving and freezing, leaving dead bodies to rot in the streets. today, finally, after a week of cars were finally able to flee. but this is a city of nearly half a million people. and it is not the only one underferocious million people. and it is not the only one under ferocious russian bombardment. we have heard far more russian artillery today on the outskirts of the capital, kyiv. we have also heard the fire of the ukrainians with their surface—to—air missiles. the sounds we are hearing today, we are describing it as the noisiest morning of the last 19 days, underlying again that the russians are coming closer. they are using heavier ordnance. and the reports from the suburbs speak of heavy, heavy fighting. the talks are taking place, another little glimmer of light, but they were paused for
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technical reasons and no sign of course, just a talker positive developments, just how positive they can be at such a time of growing worry about where this war is going. thank you very much. lyse doucet reporting from kyiv. the toll on the population here is clear, and a vast number have fled the country in the under three weeks of the war. 2.8 million people have now escaped from ukraine, most of them women and children. poland has taken the vast majority, and the population of the capital warsaw has increased by 15%. 0ur europe editor katya adler now reports on how life in warsaw has changed. this is europe's biggest refugee crisis since world war ii, and poland is very much on the front line. nearly 3 million ukrainians have so far fled their country.
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more arrive here every day, and most stay put here, in poland. it's still close to home, if not close enough. translation: i didn't want to leave, | but my parents live here in warsaw. | they begged me to bring my son to safety. we left his dad behind, fighting for ukraine. train by train, bus by bus, waves of refugees make their way to warsaw, but the army of polish volunteers that opened hearts and homes over the last two weeks say they're now close to breaking point. "we can't any more," adriana told me. "it's time for the authorities to get organised." refugee centres are beginning to appear in the polish capital. the eu has promised funds. not enough, says warsaw's mayor. the number of inhabitants of my city increased by 15% and we are doing everything we can to help but, slowly, we're becoming overwhelmed. we need a european and
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international response. all the west says it wants to help ukrainians, but it's neighbouring poland that feels like a first responder, very much in the eye of the storm. and on two fronts. this ever—growing influx of refugees seeking safety and an ever—growing concern amongst poles that russia's aggression in ukraine could spread here over the border. by accident, or by design, this weekend, russia bombed this ukrainian military base ten minutes' drive from poland. warsaw has warned the west for years the kremlin hoped to change the balance of power in europe. today, the polish prime minister said ukrainians were fighting on behalf of their european neighbours. translation: what vladimir putin is doing in ukraine is part _ of a geopolitical plan. we have to help ukrainians because they are fighting for ourfreedom, too. for warsaw pensioner krystyna,
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ukrainian refugees bring back childhood memories of war and then soviet occupation. she and her friends are making ukrainian flag ribbons. "we're too poor to give money, too old to hold a gun," she told me, "but we're helping where we can. we're scared for our own future, too." katya adler, bbc news. warsaw. whether they've fled the country or stayed to endure the war, ukrainians are suffering an agony of violence and uncertainty. it is a war that has radicalised this country's people — it's made them more ukrainian, not less. but however proud and defiant they are, this still feels like a prolonged and forbidding waiting game. from the dark skies of lviv because of the warning signs, that is all from us this evening. i'll hand you back to fiona in the studio. as we've heard, the fourth round of talks between ukraine and russia have broken up without agreement, but further talks
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will take place tomorrow. meanwhile, american and chinese officials have been meeting in rome, after us intelligence reports suggested russia has asked china for military assistance in its invasion of ukraine. china has denied there's been any such request. the us says any such move would lead to sanctions against china. with the latest, here's our diplomatic correspondent, james landale. this is what is left after russian shells fall from the sky. residential area north east ukraine laid waste by bombardments. emergency services said at least two people died with more period hidden beneath the rubble. and yet amid the bloodshed both sides are still talking. ukrainian officials holding a fourth round of discussions with russian counterparts. with both teams sounding more positive. translation: 0ur position remains unchanged.
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withdrawal of all russian troops and immediate ceasefire and only then can we talk about neighbourly relations. russia also has demands. it's foreign minister and other spokesman said the fighting. 0nce ukraine accepts that crimea belongs to russia and rules out everjoining the eu and nato. and russian diplomats continue to make wild accusations against the west. translation: the actions and donbas and luhansk are shamelessly portrayed by russian media as the result of our military operation in ukraine. they are banding about false reports about indiscriminate bombing of ukrainian towns and cities. so with the rhetoric and the fighting showing no let up, little surprise that ukrainian president is still asking for more help. translation: now i repeat again if you do not close our skies it is just a matter
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of time before russian missiles full on your territory, nato territory. and what role could china play? 0ne and what role could china play? one of its senior supplements was in rome today meeting the american national security adviser. us officials said china would face economic penalties if they russian military equipment. there are unconfirmed media reports suggesting it was ready to do so. china has accused the us are spreading fake news. forthe accused the us are spreading fake news. for the optimism from the talks few people take them at face value. the prime minister continued to talk to allies in downing street about how best to support ukraine and he will be talking soon to saudi arabia about what it can do to lower the price of oil. this afternoon borisjohnson met his latvian counterpart and will meet more northern european leaders this evening. the focus on how to beef up defences against russia. and all the
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while amid the diplomacy, the fighting in ukraine continues and people on the ground pay the price. james landale, bbc news. in a moment, we will talk to our correspondents nomia iqbal in washington and steve mcdonnel in beijing. but first, we can talk to our russia editor, steve rosenberg, who's in yaroslav, in the west of the country. steve, russia is denying it's asked for military help, but it has admitted the war isn't going to plan. the head of the russian national guard, a powerfigure, tell the head of the russian orthodox church not everything was going as fast as they would like it in ukraine. and when i was watching flagship news show on russian state tv i noticed this used used a phrase meaning, with great difficulty to describe how the russian offensive was going. meanwhile the authorities here continued to increase their control
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over information. instagram became inaccessible today in russia on twitter and facebook have already been blocked. and what of the public mood? we are on a road trip to gauge the mood outside the russian capital but from the conversations i've already had today it is clear although some people here are openly critical of the kremlin decision to go into ukraine, there are many people who still support that decision and belief the picture being painted by state television. the alternative reality that it is ukraine that is the aggressor and not russia. ukraine that is the aggressor and not russia-— not russia. steve mcdonnell in bei'ina , not russia. steve mcdonnell in beijing, china is _ not russia. steve mcdonnell in beijing, china is also _ not russia. steve mcdonnell in beijing, china is also denying l not russia. steve mcdonnell in j beijing, china is also denying it has been asked to supply military weapons to russia to help with the war in ukraine?— war in ukraine? yes, a foreign ministry spokesman _ war in ukraine? yes, a foreign ministry spokesman was - war in ukraine? yes, a foreign| ministry spokesman was asked war in ukraine? yes, a foreign - ministry spokesman was asked about these reports that moscow had asked beijing for military assistance for
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the invasion in ukraine. he said that recently the us had been coming up with various theories to smear china and he described this as fake information, fake news. and yet china is also being accused of spreading its own misinformation. we have the foreign ministry spokesman against speaking about what was described by many as conspiracy theories that the us has the kind of by a weapons programme campaign in ukraine. now the us have said there are no buy weapons that we have in ukraine. this is a bio—safety programme we have with locals to make sure that there is not an accident in this type of thing. so both washington and beijing are using this war if you like to attack one another and beijing is treading a very difficult line and walking through a minefield. 0n the one hand saying it is an independent player
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and could even be an intermediary for the war in ukraine but at every turn attempting to use this invasion is a way of attacking the us and improving its position on the world stage. improving its position on the world staue. �* ., ., ~ ., stage. and going to washington, intelligence _ stage. and going to washington, intelligence about _ stage. and going to washington, intelligence about russia - stage. and going to washington, intelligence about russia asking | intelligence about russia asking china for military help came from us intelligence. we've had talks today between the us and china so where do things stand now?— things stand now? well america to siml things stand now? well america to simply does _ things stand now? well america to simply does not — things stand now? well america to simply does not believe _ things stand now? well america to simply does not believe china. - things stand now? well america to simply does not believe china. it i things stand now? well america toj simply does not believe china. it is a blunt view saying we know russia asked you for help with weapons and ljy asked you for help with weapons and by the way don't even think about it. in fact the us official made a claim that they tell nato allies in several asian countries and not only was china showing willingness to support russia when it comes to its economy are military but it also planned to deny later that it was showing willingness. this comes as this face—to—face meeting is being
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held between president biden and his national security adviserjack sullivan in the top foreign policy officer in china. we do not have full details of that meeting yet, we'll find out later but jack sullivan was pretty tough going into the meeting and he had said china would face consequences if tries to help russia. to circumvent sanctions or try to bail russia out. and one of those things could be economic sanctions. china cares deeply about its trade groups with customers and the other thing to add is intelligence officials in the us have long been worried about this budding alliance between china and russia. but they also believe there is a limit to just how far china will go to help russia but as of yet we do not know what the limit is. thank you all very much. the government has announced
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a new sponsorship scheme to enable people in the uk to offer a home to ukrainian refugees. anyone wishing to get involved will need to undergo vetting checks and register on a government website. in return, hosts will receive £350 a month to take in refugees escaping the fighting from ukraine for at least six months. labour have criticised the idea as overly bureaucratic and a diy asylum scheme. with more details, here's our home editor mark easton. with open arms. britain is being encouraged to open its arms to tens of thousands of ukrainians. celebrities and politicians among those who say they would like to sponsor those fleeing the war, inviting them into their homes until the refugees can return to their motherland. . .open arms. the government wants to tap into the wave of public support for ukraine... thank you, see you soon. ..getting individuals and organisations to look after refugees rather than setting up a state—run humanitarian route.
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horn sounds. there will be no limit to the number of ukrainians who can— benefit from this scheme. the scheme will be open to all- ukrainian nationals and residents. they will be able to live and work in the united kingdom _ for up to three years. they will have full and unrestricted access to benefits, health care, . employment and other support. the challenge is setting up a scheme that ensures the safety and well—being of highly vulnerable refugees while not requiring sponsors to go through too many hoops. if you'd like to house a ukrainian, you must agree to take someone for a minimum of six months, apply online via the government website, identify a named person you wish to bring to britain, satisfy your local authority your property is suitable, and undergo security and safeguarding checks. what we've seen today is the government playing catch up with the breadth of appetite across british society to make sure we make a generous offer of sanctuary
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and that the public are ready, willing and waiting to play their own part in doing that when we see the scenes on the news. we've had hundreds of people respond, got nearly 1000 offers of beds around the country. this charity aims to link the welcoming with the welcomed, but the organisers warn that finding the right match is not always straightforward. you got people coming in who've got various needs. they might have school needs, they might have medical care needs. and you've got people who have accommodation, but they haven't got it between the months ofjuly and august or they have got it available and they've got children coming back from university, so there's going to be quite a lot of complexity, ilhink _ for some, support for ukraine means direct action. protesters occupied russian oligarch 0leg deripaska's mansion in london's exclusive belgrave square today. the ukrainian flag hung from a window until right police moved in. people want to do something, to send a message to the kremlin and support the people of ukraine, but the question is how to turn goodwill into useful support? the community sponsorship scheme set
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up amid the syrian crisis only helped around 500 refugees in five years. the ambition is much greater this time, and there is undoubted enthusiasm for a scheme that awakens civil society and shows solidarity with ukraine, but whether it can respond adequately to the emergency unfolding across europe remains an open question. mark easton, bbc news. and if you'd like more details on that story, you can visit the bbc news website on bbc.co.uk/news — or you can go on the bbc news app. all covid travel restrictions for people coming into the uk are to be dropped. after nearly two years of changing restrictions, they will all go, even for people who've not been vaccinated. 0ur travel correspondent katy austin is here — so tell us more, for starters when will this happen? the transport secretary said all
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remaining measures would go from four o'clock on friday morning. testing requirements for fully vaccinated passengers coming into the uk were already dropped in february and now people who are not fully vaccinated will also no longer have to take a predeparture or post—arrival covid test and nobody will have to fill in a passenger locator form. will have to fill in a passenger locatorform. the will have to fill in a passenger locator form. the government says it is keeping some contingency measures in reserve in case another harmful variant comes along. but it insists they will only be used in extreme circumstances. so for now other people need to pay attention to the rules that could apply a bigger station business travel and holidays will be getting much easier again. this is very welcome news to the travel industry who of course have been hit so hard in the past couple of years and they are very pleased about the fact that these changes are being made in time for the easter and summer holidays and they say there is high demand for travel at those peak times. there are still
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some headwinds facing the travel sector including the soaring price ofjet sector including the soaring price of jet fuel sector including the soaring price ofjet fuel and it's not clear how the war in ukraine and increasing cost of living with rising bills will impact consumer confidence but certainly the mood in today is welcome and very significant.— today is welcome and very siunificant. . ., ~ , ., the supreme court has denied julian assange permission to appeal against the high court's decision to extradite him to the united states. the uk's highest court rejected the appeal on the basis his application did not raise "an arguable point of law." a high courtjudge will now consider whether the wikileaks founder will be sent to the us, where he faces multiple charges related to leaking classified documents. the case now goes back down to the original decision making judge. prince charles has represented the queen this afternoon at the annual commonwealth day service at westminster abbey. it's the first time the queen has missed the event in almost a decade. she's recently had covid. in a reference to the war in ukraine, she called in her message for unity in these testing times. 0ur royal correspondent
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nicholas witchell reports. it has been one of the abiding themes of her reign. the commonwealth of nations, representing nearly one third of the world's population, and a fifth of its land area. but now, after 70 years of the queen's reign, it's time for others to take the lead. the simple fact is that the long walk up the aisle of westminster abbey is too much for a monarch who is nearly 96. the congregation was transported to different commonwealth cultures. it was reminded of today's story taking place on the boundaries of this continent. at least for the moment ukraine risks being pulverised. but above all, this was the commonwealth paying tribute to the person who today was absent, but who has done so much to keep it together.
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long live the queen! amen. hip, hip, hip! hurray! today's cheers were unscripted. and in two weeks, there will be another heartfelt occasion, a service of thanksgiving for the life of the duke of edinburgh. the queen will hope to be there. nicholas witchell, bbc news. time for a look at the weather, here's matt taylor. more of us had a bit of dry weather tomorrow. there had been some rain around today. that is due to a weather front approaching tonight but for the time being still somewhat weathered to come in scotland and the north of england but clearing away in the first part of the night. for most largely clear skies for time and that means some
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