today at six, world leaders gather to discuss the war here in ukraine, one month on from the russian invasion. shooting. explosions. we have a special report from the front line, in the city of kharkiv, that's under constant russian bombardment. you can see what they are up against here. this is daily but the steadfastness of these men has been felt notjust in kharkiv, but around the world. they have had a four weeks of this and still they remain — the russians have not been able to break their lines. western leaders meeting in brussels promise to increase military aid to ukraine and send tens of thousands more troops to countries in eastern europe. nato has never, never been more

united _ nato has never, never been more united than— nato has never, never been more united than it is today. putin is getting — united than it is today. putin is getting exactly the opposite of what he intended to have as a consequence of going _ he intended to have as a consequence of going into ukraine. we'll have the latest on the conflict in ukraine and the day's other main stories. p&0 ferries admit they did break the law by sacking 800 staff without consultation. their new workers will be paid around £5.50 an hour. the police body—camera footage shown to a jury at the old bailey in the trial of a man accused of murdering an mp. and as food and energy costs rise, a warning that more than a million people will be pushed into poverty unless more government help is offered. and coming up on the bbc news channel, all to play for in cardiff. wales can move a step closer to qualifying for a first world cup in 64 years. can they beat austria tonight?

good evening from lviv in ukraine. a month ago today, the world changed when russia invaded this country. since then, thousands of russian and ukrainian troops have been killed, as well a huge number of civilians. more than three million people have been forced to flee from ukraine. and today, leaders of the western military alliance nato met in brussels to discuss what the world should do now. we start tonight with a special report from inside the city of kharkiv, in the east of the country, less than 25 miles from the russian border. it has faced relentless russian missile strikes and shelling. our correspondent quentin sommerville and camera journalist darren conway have spent time

with two fighters who have been on the front line since the very beginning. a month of fighting alone. and russian guns still haven't silenced ukraine's cry for freedom. at the kharkiv philharmonic, maria baranovska may not have an audience, but this is not a city abandoned, only a city half gone. she remains here with her ten—month—old boy. staying is her duty. translation: i believe in our victory. _ i know that the armed forces of ukraine will protect their home. we just need to be a little bit more patient. standing united with the boys

defending her and her son. a month ago, 22—year—old vlad said goodbye to his own mother and went off to fight. he and fellow private mark have been here ever since. they have quickly grown comfortable with war�*s daily tempo. they have the upper hand in kharkiv. what are you fighting for? translation: for peace in ukraine. what about you, mark? translation: like my comrade “ust said, for peace in ukraine. �* these people came to our land. no one was waiting for them here, no one asked them to come. and what do you want to tell the russian soldiers that are shelling you? run. we were not calling you here. run away. there is nothing else to say. either you stay here forever, in the ground, or you go back home and stop killing children

and destroying homes and families. go back home while you are still alive. their steady determination, and a little help from western weaponry, have got them this far. it is time to head out to the front again. this, they say, is their land. they know these fields and villages better than the invaders. and here, amid the melting winter snows, they cover every inch of ground. ukrainian mud is the defender�*s friend. mark's foxhole has room for one, and offers just about enough protection from exploding russian shells.

suddenly, on the horizon, there is movement. an enemy scouting party spotted. shooting. the russians shoot back. but the danger here is artillery. mark tells us we have to move. the russians will definitely respond, he says, 100%. it's time to seek better cover. what is it like, spending day and night out in those tiny, tiny little trenches? the shifts are longer during the day, but at night, when it's cold, we swap often. what about you, mark? it's ok, you get used to it. humans can adapt to... explosions. humans can adapt to everything.

what's going on right now? they are targeting our position. explosions. get down, get down. the shells begin to land all around us, only metres away. explosions. you can see what they are up against here. this is daily, but the steadfastness of these men has been felt notjust in kharkiv, but around the world. they have had four weeks of this and still they remain. the russians have not been able to break their lines and this invasion might have come as a surprise to the rest

of the world but this is what they have been expecting and training for for years. unable to move, the shelling is relentless. these bombardments are endless. this is russia's tactic of choice. shouting. we are told for the third time that day to get into a nearby underground shelter. the russians are pretty determined to break these lines. are they going to get past here? are they going to get past you and these men? i think no. we will not surrender kharkiv. our loved ones have got our backs. they won't get through here. quentin sommerville, bbc news, kharkiv. well, three weeks ago, a huge convoy of russian troops

moved towards the capital, kyiv, but its advance was stalled. since then, fierce fighting has taken place in the towns and cities outside the capital, and ukrainian forces now claim they've succeded in pushing russian troops back with a series of counterattacks, asjeremy bowen reports. in small groups, ukrainian soldiers are crossing the river irpin, joining the month long battle to keep the russians out of kyiv. it's bad, said one of the last civilians leaving. children are dying, everyone is dying. only a few other civilians are coming out of the ruins. slava emerged, desperate to save her dogs. thousands of civilians came this way when the war started, but now this whole area has been swept up by the fighting.

ukrainian troops have broken all the russian ground attacks here so far. so now, moscow increasingly are using the weapon they trust most, heavy artillery. we were here about three weeks ago, and there is a massive difference. look at the devastation around this area. it's been hit very heavily. the shelling makes all movement here dangerous, so the command posts are underground. the ukrainians say the russians have only a toehold in irpin. outside, they have been pushed back. you say they cannot get into the city. why is that? apart from your own resistance, what do they lack? translation: they don't have the combat power. l his men are hitting their supplies and kyiv, they would be armed citizens shooting from every window and door. a former british soldier

is fighting here. he is a medic and a sniper and says this is the worst he's seen. i have seen lots of civilians killed. we witnessed a car get blown to pieces. it was a family of equity from the city. nothing left? nothing. on the road to kyiv which the russians have tried repeatedly to seize, either side is burning from the shelf. back in the city centre, more volunteers were waiting to be transferred to the long fight in and around irpin. it was quiet, a little tense. they knew what would be waiting for them. katrine had a few minutes with her son. she's a sniper. she said his name is nikita, he's 18 months old.

i will kill, she said to protect his future. the war has changed everything for these volunteers, for all of ukraine, and the world now feels more dangerous. whatever happens in the battles that these soldiers are going to fight, it's clear already after a month that this is the biggest threat to international peace and security in decades. and the consequences, the impact of this war is already being felt beyond the borders of ukraine. the younger ones were born when europe was hopeful, in the 1990s. the men in their 60s grew up when this city was part of the soviet union. it was time to say goodbye. the old drumbeat of the cold war, of the risks of confrontation between the big powers, is back for a new generation. the buses left for the front line.

jeremy bowen, bbc news, kyiv. world leaders, including the us presidentjoe biden, have been gathering in brussels today for three major summits on the war in ukraine. the nato military alliance approved plans to increase troop numbers in neighbouring eastern european countries, in the face of what nato has called the biggest security crisis in a generation. leaders of the eu, and the g7 ? the group of the largest world economies — are also meeting today, in a display of international unity. our north america editor sarah smith reports. this show of solidarity is why president biden's here. with the nato chief and over 30 other world leaders to display the unity they believe is their strength. although boris johnson looks remarkably isolated, even as the kremlin crowned him the most active

anti—russian leader. i have rarely seen our nations more united in recent years than we are now. putin's failure in ukraine is vital for the peace and prosperity of all of us, and his barbaric invasion has galvanised the international community into collective action. the nato summit is naturally focused on defence, how to help defend ukraine. more weapons and equipment are being promised with britain pledging to double the number of missiles being sent. but ukrainian president zelensky wants far more. translation: you can give us 1% of all your aircraft. _ i% of all your tanks. 1%. we cannotjust buy it, so to supply it directly depends only on nato's decisions, on political decisions, by the way. nato will not send troops to ukraine, but will

station many more forces in member countries bordering russia as the alliance turns to face east. nato is being rapidly reshaped by this war in ukraine in ways that the us has been pressing forfor years. and on the plane on the way over here, president biden's national security adviser told me it is time for member countries to put their money where their mouths are. in other words, european countries need to spend more and contribute more forces and for many years to come. putin was banking i on nato being split. my early conversation with him| in december and earlyjanuary, it was clear to me he did not think we could sustain this cohesion. i nato has never, never been more united - than it is today. putin is getting exactlyl the opposite of what he intended to have as a consequence of going into ukraine. _ at the g7 economic meeting, sanctions were on the table. with more imposed on russia

today as everyone keeps a wary eye on whether china will try to assist russia, either financially or militarily. ending europe's dependence on russian oil and gas is next on the us a promise to send supplies a liquefied natural gas and wants to know there is a long—term plan to get supplies elsewhere as the crisis in ukraine is reshaping global relations for the long—term. sarah smith, bbc news, brussels. well, after one month to the day after russia invaded this country, ukrainians are wondering how many more months of war lie ahead, how many more people here will die, or be forced to flee from their homes. that's all from us here in lviv. back now to huw in the studio. many thanks to you and the team in ukraine. p&o ferries did break the law when it sacked

800 workers last week without consulting the trades unions. the company's chief executive made the open admission in response to questions from a parliamentary committee at westminster. peter hebblethwaite said he had chosen not to consult because he didn't believe there was any other way to do it. the staff are being replaced with agency workers, earning an average of £5.50 an hour. mr hebblethwaite told mps that reducing p&0's wage bill was the only way to make the company viable, as our transport correspondent katy austin reports. arriving to face mps this morning... are you ashamed of sacking the staff? the boss of the ferry company which suddenly decided to fire 800 workers last week. the difficult question started straightaway. are you in this mess because you don't know what you are doing or are you just a shameless criminal? later, he insisted the law had not been broken when it came to notifying relevant authorities of the redundancy plans. on the lack of consultation, though, he said this. there is no doubt that we were

required to consult with unions. we chose not to do that because we believed... you chose to break the law? because we chose not to consult, and will compensate everybody in full for that. he said replacement agency crew will be paid on average £5.50 per hour. that's below the national minimum wage of- this country. how you reconcile that? where are governed by national minimum wage, we will actually pay national minimum wage. this is an international seafaring model that is consistent with models throughout the globe and our competitors. he apologised to workers affected by what happened last thursday, but argued it was the only option to save the business and he would make the same decision again. save the company... save the company? you have trashed its reputation. john, one of the workers

who lost his job, listen to today's hearing. this is outrageous. i am shocked, i am sickened and his position is untenable. labour said the government had still done nothing to act. the transport secretary announced a review of maritime employment laws and said that protections for minimum wages would be strengthened. the political row over the sacking continues. peter hepworth thwaite faces calls to resign. a week on, many sacked workers are still shocked. for now, many of the company ferries are going nowhere. they will have to pass inspections before they can sail again. the chancellor, rishi sunak, has been under growing pressure to defend the choices made in his spring statement yesterday, amid claims that he hasn't done nearly enough to help the poorest households. the cost of living is rising at the fastest rate for 30 years,

and planned increases in benefits will be much smaller than the rise in inflation this year. our economics editor, faisal islam, has the latest. in this part of manchester, reverend ellie trimble, who runs a discount food market, said she can see with her own eyes the historic fall in living standards revealed by the government's official forecasters yesterday. increasing numbers of those needing help havejobs. we know that the cost of living isjust going through the ceiling. and it is really scary for people that are actually earning a living. and it is terrifying for people who are having to rely on benefits. as experts poured over the decisions, it became clear the chancellor has kept some powder dry to help. for example, with an expected further significant rise in energy prices in the autumn.

in its analysis of winners and losers from the chancellor's decisions, the institute for fiscal studies showed how yesterday's measures might help an average earner and someone on the national living wage and universal credit. before yesterday's announcements, this was the substantial hit to both their incomes due to prices rising faster than wages and tax rises. after yesterday, the average earner on a salary of about 27,500 will now take a lesser hit but still a hit of £359 over a year. while for someone on the national living wage and universal credit, they still take an overall hit of £519. we indicated in the spring statement that he will keep things under review and he may do more if needed so there is certainly a rationale for that, given the degree for uncertainty. having said that, some of the costs on people's budgets are going to feed through more quickly than the energy price cap increase in october and therefore households are likely— to feel the squeeze before the autumn budget.

both pm and chancellor, just hours after their spring package of measures, including a fuel duty cut, acknowledged that more support might be needed. it's the hardest part about this job, not being able to do- everything that people would like you to do, i but i cannot make - every problem go away. but where we can make - a difference, we want to, and that is what yesterday was about. the chancellor's choices mean consequences for millions of people beyond those on benefits. there will be about 3 million new taxpayers and 2 million new higher rate taxpayers as a result of the freeze in income tax thresholds and high rates of inflation. and then there is also a decision to be made for 6 million people about public sector pay. we are a trade union, strike action is always an option for us. i would never rule it out but i think our key focus at the moment is to try and change the government's mind. the government is adamant that it cannot prevent all of the impact of a global shock to energy and food prices hitting british households. faisal islam, bbc news.

the man accused of murdering the conservative mp sir david amess told police he'd committed an act of terror. ali harbi ali, who's 26, denies charges of murder and preparing acts of terrorism. the jurors were shown body—camera footage of a confrontation between the suspect and two unarmed police officers, as our correspondent daniel sandford reports. so we're going to go in and contain him, right? armed only with batons, the first two police officers arriving at the church where sir david amess mp had been stabbed. they hesitate, but then decide to go in and confront the suspect. drop the knife. drop the bleep knife now! on the floor now! get him down! right, search him. right, mate, at the moment, you are under arrest for murder, all right? at the police station, ali harbi ali explained his motivation.

was it domestic or hate related? terror. pardon? terror. on what basis? racial, religious? religious. in the months before, he had several times visited the area around parliament and even the house of the cabinet minister michael gove. he denies charges of murder and preparing terrorist acts. daniel sandford, bbc news, at the old bailey. let's have more now on the the situation in ukraine. it's one month since the invasion began, and a growing number of experts agree that the russian advance has slowed. our security correspondent frank gardner has this assessment of the current state of the conflict. the kremlin's plan was simple, and as it turned out, absurdly overoptimistic — cross the border on three fronts, capture the big cities with overwhelming force and then the ukrainian government would soon collapse. well, it hasn't

turned out like that. at an operational level, it's been a disaster. it's also been an international humiliation for putin in particular, but for russia more generally. because it has exposed all the faulty thinking. so, just why has it gone so badly for russia in these first few weeks of the war? well, there are a number of reasons. there is the strength of ukrainian resistance. most of the population has rallied round their government. the troops are using western—supplied weapons like javelin and stinger missiles. and when it comes to getting inside big cities, russia doesn't have enough troops to take on the defenders in most cases. even on the coast on the sea of azov, where the russian navy predominates, it's taking hits. this was a russian supply ship targeted today by the ukrainian navy. then there's poor russian tactics. russian commanders on the ground have largely failed to take full advantage of all the tools at their disposal.

things like armoured vehicles, artillery, rocket launchers, helicopters and warplanes, all of which when combined with the infantry can have a massive effect, but which the russians have apparently failed to co—ordinate. and finally, there's poor russian logistics and communications. russian soldiers have not always maintained their vehicles properly, meaning that many of them are breaking down. and when it comes to radios, a lot of them don't work, forcing them to use mobile phones which can easily be intercepted by the ukrainians. many of the russian soldiers thought they were just going on exercise, like this one in belarus. that didn't give their ncos, the sergeants and corporals, enough time to prepare for battle. in the russian army, the sergeants and the corporals are renowned for their inefficiency, their corruption and the bad relationships they have with the soldiers. so, everything that could go wrong more or less did go wrong. russian military doctrine says if you can't advance into a city, you pummel it with artillery. that's what's happened

to mariupol and other cities at huge humanitarian cost, but russia, too, has had thousands killed so far. what the west fears now is that to break the stalemate, the kremlin will resort to something as drastic as chemical or battlefield nuclear weapons to tip the odds in its favour. frank gardner, bbc news. russian president vladimir putin has never called it a war, but rather a "special operation" to demilitarise his neighbour. russia has seen protesters take the streets and life for many has been changed drastically by economic sanctions. our russia editor steve rosenberg reports from st petersberg. a warning his report contains flashing images. at the age of 76, she's a prolific artist, but for yelena, the priority now isn't paintings, it's placards.

they�* re anti—war and anti—putin. "putin is war," this one says. "we don't want to die for putin." after russia attacked ukraine, yelena took to the streets of st petersburg. like many anti—war protests in russia, it ended like this. she describes one of her favourite placards the police haven't given back. translation: i'd been given some red tulips, | beautiful young flowers. but very quickly they died and wilted. they reminded me of young men falling into their graves, so i made a poster and wrote, "the people were being sent to their deaths." in vladimir putin's home city, home truths about ukraine. and deep concern.

this human rights group is taking calls from russian mothers worried that their conscript sons are in ukraine. under intense pressure from the authorities, the group is having to close down. translation: the authorities prefer to cover up problems, _ to give society a false picture that everything in the army's absolutely fine. they want soldiers' mothers to be patient and to be silent. for the staff, a moment of reflection and prayers for an end to the fighting. but when this conflict does end, life here will never be the same. when vladimir putin came to power in russia more than 20 years ago, he promised russians security and stability. today, his army is suffering losses in ukraine, the economy

here is suffering from sanctions and russia is facing growing international isolation. but from the kremlin, no hint of regret. and putin knows that many russians do still trust him because he controls the media here and the messaging. many here still believe he is taking russia in the right direction, even if that means confrontation and conflict. steve rosenberg, bbc news, st petersburg. our chief international correspondent lyse doucet has been in the ukrainian capital kyiv since the start of the invasion. shejoins us now. today, what are your reflections after a month of the conflict? well, look at this — after a month of the conflict? well, look at this programme, _ after a month of the conflict? well, look at this programme, what - after a month of the conflict? it look at this programme, what have we heard? this has been a month like no other. for ukraine, for europe, for the rest of the world. so many

around the world took