this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories. multiple explosions are heard in the western city of lviv — smoke rises over the ukrainian city as russian rocket attacks continue. president biden visits poland, where he met ukrainian refugees and addressed crowds in warsaw. he had this message about vladimir putin. for god's sake, this man cannot remain in power. with the continuous missile attacks in the capital kyiv and surrounding areas, we assess the destruction left behind. in other news, a ferry operated by p&0 has been detained in northern ireland because of fears about staff training.

a number of powerful explosions have been heard near the western ukrainian city of lviv. they came as president biden was preparing to deliver a set piece speech in the polish capital warsaw, accusing russia of trying to strangle democracy. these pictures are believed to show a fuel storage plant which was hit earlier in the day, and officials later confirmed that a defence facility was also hit. according to the city's mayor, five people have been injured. no—one was killed. lviv has been less affected by the fighting than most cities in ukraine, making it a refuge for people fleeing attacks elsewhere in the country. but in the past few hours, further blasts have been heard in the city.

a little earlier lucy williamson who is in lviv gave us this update on the situation there. there have been five or six explosions across lviv. the mayor said there was significant infrastructure damage. the only confirmed target we have so far is the fuel storage depot. a short time ago, a fire was still raging inside the depot. we are hearing five people have been injured in the strike. what makes it slightly different from the other strikes we have had in the region is the location. the depot is less than two miles from the city centre, surrounded by cafes, restaurants, residential premises. any people in lviv told me over

and over and again, this is a safe refuge from the war, and there are people here tonight who are still determined to believe that, even as it's getting harder and harder to do. the united nations says a ukrainian child becomes a refugee every 90 seconds. its aid agency unicef has been working in the country to provide medical supplies and counselling to help those in need. the organisation's spokesperson, james elder, has been telling me how severely the war has affected children. one in two children in a month have had to flee their homes. that means fleeing under bombardment, under indiscriminate attack. in cities suffocating with a lack of water and medical supplies. so it's grave, a deathly dangerous situation, as we continue to see indiscriminate attacks on those cities.

as you say, people who thought they could seek refuge here in lviv and the west of the country. nowhere right now feels safe, and that is why we are seeing an outflux into neighbouring countries that we have not seen the speed and scale of since world war ii. and do aid agencies like yourselves have the resources needed to be able to help them? or is there only so much that can feasibly be done? it's both, unicef has been here for years. we are sending trucks and trucks of medical supplies, surgical supplies, obstetrics supplies, because mums are having babies in bunkers, to 50 hospitals across the country. watertablets, generators, blankets, child protection teams. it's a huge response, but given the scale of the need, given the indiscriminate attacks that continue, it's very, very difficult to meet and guarantee the safety of children, whether they are being bombarded or they are in cities where the humanitarian corridors keep being disrespected for agencies like unicef and others.

i want to ask about the situation where you are — we have heard there have been more explosions in lviv in the last few hours. did you hear them? yes, i did. it was saturday afternoon, i had been to a hospital earlier in the day, there was an air raid siren, women carrying two—day—old babies, women who were 36 weeks pregnant, in a cold basement, not a bunker we must remember, but they are trying to protect their most precious newborns. you could see plumes of smoke. those women are hiding again tonight, terrified, petrified. so many people, children... you can see in the faces of families who have been through this in kyiv, through this in kyiv, kharkiv, who thought they were getting a moment of respite, well, the missiles tell a very different story tonight unfortunately. james, i want to ask you about something that unicef�*s

executive director said, which was that the refugee crisis in ukraine facing children could have lasting consequences for generations to come. that was from the executive director catherine russell. can you explain what that means? she is spot on, it means two things. one is the trauma. unicef is still working in yemen and syria, the longer a conflict goes on and the longer a child is exposed to bombardments or relative safety of a bunker, or seeing their mother and father stressed, as we have seen thousands of times, separated, dads explaining to children why they are going to another country why the dad is staying behind, it scars a child. we risk trauma which has a long—term impact on development, on income generation, mental health. that is what our executive director speaks to, and of course the brain

drain, the best and brightest young children leaving, young children leaving, young adults going to the front line. the safest and fastest way out of this generational problem is for the bombs to stop. we have child protection teams in between conflict lines, we have counsellors in the bunkers dressing up as batman in kharkiv, for the children, but it is triage as long as bombs keep coming. at the end of a three—day visit to europe, presidentjoe biden used a set piece speech in warsaw to appeal directly appealed to to appeal directly to the russian people with comparisons between the invasion of ukraine and the horrors of the second world war as he called for vladimir putin to go. he was speaking in the polish capital, where he had met ukrainian refugees and earlier referred to the russian leader as a "butcher". let's listen to what he said in a speech to crowds.

a dictator bent on rebuilding an empire will never erase a people's love for a liberty. brutality will never grind down their will to be free. ukraine will never be a victory for russia. for free people refuse to live in a world of hopelessness and darkness. we will have a different future, a brighterfuture, rooted in democracy and principles, hope and light, of decency and dignity and freedom of possibilities. for god's sake, this man cannot remain in power. god bless you all, and may god defend ourfreedom. and may god protect our troops. thank you for your patience. our correspondent mark lowen was watching the speech in warsaw. it was a very strident comment at the end of the speech. he said, for god's sake, this man cannot remain in power. and, as you say, we have just had a statement from a white house official saying that the president's

point was that putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbours or the region. he was not discussing putin's power in russia or a regime change. i think, of course, the fear will be that vladimir putin and the kremlin would take from joe biden�*s comment that there would be absolutely no point at all in trying to engage in any kind of diplomacy to try to, you know, move forward, end this, if the americans are calling for a regime change. possibly whatjoe biden was hinting at was, you know, there should be internal opposition to vladimir putin, he talked in his speech about the 200,000 russians who have left the country in the last month, the brain drain, and we have seen of course all those anti—war protests in recent weeks which have been brutally suppressed, so perhaps, injoe biden�*s mind, what he was hinting at was that, you know, freedom—loving russians should rise up in some way or should make their voices heard.

he had a message for ordinary russians, saying, you are not our enemy, this is not your war. so, you know, i think an attempt at damage limitation, i suppose, from the biden administration. was this an off—the—cuff statement? was this a bit of ad—libbing byjoe biden at the end of a speech? we simply don't know. this is a president who does go off message sometimes, so perhaps it was in that direction, but clearly the white house is trying to row back a little bit from what his comment will be interpreted by some parties to have meant. and mark, how much of this speech was about getting the message to people in russia, as you said, and to the ukrainian people, and how much of it was in any way aiming towards de—escalation or diplomacy, because it certainly felt like it was more of the former than the latter? yeah, i don't think there is any hope, really,

of diplomacy, you know, between the americans and the russians at this stage. earlier on today, joe biden repeated his belief that vladimir putin is a war criminal. he also called him a butcher and in the last 2a hours, we have had the kremlin saying that they were going to shift their military focus to the east and then suddenly, today, bombing lviv in the west, where, you know, just 200 miles or so from where president biden was giving a speech in warsaw. was that a message of defiance to the americans? who knows? but clearly a sign from the kremlin that no part of ukraine is safe. there is exasperation, clearly, with vladimir putin. joe biden saying that putin is completely to blame, all the attempts to talk to vladimir putin before this war, before the invasion broke out, were, you know, putin was lying at every step.

so, you know, a defiant message, a message of support to the ukrainians, a message of support to poland and to its nato allies, and a clear message that vladimir putin has to end this aggression. victor ashe is a former united states ambassador to poland and hejoins me live from florida. what do you make of president biden�*s visit and in particular the significance of his references to the cold war in his speech? i think eve hinu the cold war in his speech? i think everything he _ the cold war in his speech? i think everything he said _ the cold war in his speech? i think everything he said was _ everything he said was accurate. starting his remarks and being unafraid and quoting popejohn paul ii in front of a polish audience, it would be like quoting martin luther king in front of an african—american audience. you can't go wrong in poland withjohn paul ii. also pointing out the mendacity of

vladimir putin, which has been consistent in terms of the whole ukraine situation. so i think it was well stated. clearly i don't think it was in the prepared remarks when he said, and i assume he was referring to putin, that he has to go. although i don't think many of us would disagree with that. the question is, is it wise to say it? do you think he was wise to say it? i think you would have been better not saying it, but i don't think it's any fatal or dreadful mistake. we all remember the debate with fdr and churchill being right to demand unconditional surrender in world war ii, some people said it extended the war, i'm not sure it did. saying putin has to go, i think most of us

would agree that russia needs a better leader than someone who can't tell the truth and basically is a war criminal. no country deserves a war criminal. no country deserves a war criminal. no country deserves a war criminal as president. fix, war criminal. no country deserves a war criminal as president.— war criminal as president. a white house official— war criminal as president. a white house official has _ war criminal as president. a white house official has said _ war criminal as president. a white house official has said since - war criminal as president. a white house official has said since then. house official has said since then that biden was not calling for regime change in russia. but do you think the rhetoric of president biden�*s speech means that it is an end to any hope of a diplomatic path to de—escalation or do you think that ship had sailed already? i think the diplomatic path is still there. it takes two to have it. to this point, russia has shown no interest, none. the statement that it was going to concentrate on the donbas, which came only 18 hours before the attack on lviv in western ukraine, it'sjust before the attack on lviv in western ukraine, it's just another indication that they are incapable of being truthful. just indication that they are incapable of being truthful.— of being truthful. just very briefl , of being truthful. just very briefly, how _ of being truthful. just very briefly, how much - of being truthful. just very briefly, how much do - of being truthful. just very briefly, how much do you | of being truthful. just very - briefly, how much do you think president biden�*s speech was sending

a message to nato as much as russia? i think very much though, particularly to a polish audience. poland has stepped up to the plate. they have accepted over 2 million refugees in five weeks. that's on her door, i can't think of any other country in the world, even in world war ii, where you had huge amounts of refugees. —— that is unheard of. i think it was designed for poland, nato and russia. also, is there a resistance in russia which wants putin to go? i don't know. perhaps you wouldn't openly discuss it, but there's nothing wrong in giving statements that would be encouraging to those in russian society who think putin has made a terrible mistake. ~ ,,., , think putin has made a terrible mistake. ~ , , ., , , mistake. absolutely. that seems part of president biden's _ mistake. absolutely. that seems part of president biden's rhetoric- mistake. absolutely. that seems part of president biden's rhetoric there. i of president biden�*s rhetoric there. thank you forjoining us, victor.

the conflict has been continuing near the ukrainian capital, kyiv. jeremy bowen has been finding out what has been happening in some of the worst—hit areas near the capital. the russians released these pictures of a cruise missiles launch from the black sea fleet, a reminder that they have a lot of firepower left. in the almost deserted villages between kyiv and the russians, reminders are not necessary. they've been battered. this is lysyanka — about an hour's drive west of kyiv. the ukrainians claim they have the russians on the run here. it didn't feel like that. these are the remains of russian cluster munitions dropped on friday evening. why are they hitting you here? because here, many ukrainian warriors and this is line

of front, forefront. how far are the russians from here? one kilometres from here. russian warriors one kilometre from here. civilian houses were hit. so many residents have left that they said there were no casualties. kate and herfamily had only gone as far as kyiv. i can say i'm proud ukrainian. my mother, father are ukrainians. my mother, fatherare ukrainians. i 'ust my mother, fatherare ukrainians. i just dont— my mother, fatherare ukrainians. i just don't understand why we should io just don't understand why we should go somewhere, why we should let our houses _ a short walk away, another house was destroyed. the owners don't have anything to come back to. the neighbours were fixing their house. volodymyr said the russians

were responding to ukrainian shelling, but he said, "our guys won't leave until they drive the russians away." ukrainian resistance derailed russia's plans, but claims they're being forced to retreat around here are premature. you can still feel some of the heat from the fire caused by the missile that hit this house. it doesn't feel at all as if anything is settled around here. i'd be very cautious about assuming that simply because the russians say they will concentrate more on eastern ukraine, that their business around the capital is finished. they were prosperous here before the invasion, with a riding school stabling a0 horses. when this horse was wounded in an attack earlier this

month, the man who looked after it was killed. smaller incidents don't make headlines but take lives, and change them. jeremy bowen, bbc news, kyiv. thousands of people have marched through london to show solidarity with the people of ukraine. organised by the capital's mayor, sadiq khan, the march received support from hollywood stars dame helen mirren and dame julie walters. a vigil was also held, as alison earle reports. a sea of blue and yellow. flags, banners and balloons. thousands turned up to march in central london, all with the same message. stop putin, stop the war. both my parents are ukrainian. so they came over in the war, in 1946, so had to show solidarity and this is my daughter. yes. i only found out yesterday that this was on and dad texted me - so i thought why not show support?

we started at the back and ambled our way through and got here. really happy to see how many people were here in support. incredibly surprised. turned a corner and saw a sea of people. made me really emotional. walking along park lane and towards piccadilly, the march was organised after ukraine's president urged people across the world to take to the streets to mark a month since russia's invasion. i'm so proud of the response of londoners over the last few days and weeks. not simply donating money to help those charities and groups supporting those who have either fled ukraine or are in ukraine, but also the numbers of londoners opening their homes for those fleeing from ukraine. it is really important that we stand shoulder to shoulder with them. tereza is ukrainian and has family caught up in the conflict. in the last two weeks, her sister made it safely to london but she fears for those

who are still there. one of my friends' family, they were sleeping with the pan on their head because they were frightened of the bombing. they were living eight days without electricity and water. it comes as sadiq khan announced to support people seeking asylum here — to send a message that london stands with them. alison earle, bbc london. a p&o ferry is being prevented from leaving northern ireland due to safety fears. the maritime and coastguard agency, says the vessel, the european causeway, is being held in larne because of a lack of crew training and missing documents. with the latest, here's katie prescott. # you're not sailing...# in hull today, members of the rmt union blocked access to the dock from where the p&o's pride of rotterdam was setting sail.

they also came out in liverpool and dover against p&o's sacking of 800 staff without notice, replacing them with cheaper agency workers. we've raised grave concerns around this. bringing a wholesale crew in on—board the vessel that they're not familiar with, to sail across the busiest shipping lane in the world, carrying passengers. it's going to be a dangerous act and there's going to be blood on the hands of p80 and the government, if they don't listen to what they're saying and take in our concerns around safety into consideration. now the p80 ships, with new crewing arrangements, need to pass new safety checks. in larne, p&o's european causeway has failed the maritime and coastguard agency's inspection and been deemed unfit to sail. the company said it made the decision to replace crews as it was losing £100 million a year. the longer its ships can't sail, though, the more these losses increase, and it hits trade, because these ships carry goods

as well as passengers. a lot of businesses are having to prioritise what they send and when they send it. some businesses have actually had to bring in extra staff from gb to the distribution centres here. the key message is, goods that need to get here are still getting through, but it's creating a heavy workload. checks of p&o's ships will continue in the coming days but the decision to detain the european causeway doesn't bode well for a swift return to the seas. katie prescott, bbc news. there have been numerous tributes to taylor hawkins, the drummer of the rock group foo fighters, who's died at the age of 50. his body was found in a hotel room in the colombian capital bogota, where the band had been due to perform at a festival. here's our music correspondent, mark savage. # foo fighters — times like these. muscular but melodic, taylor hawkins

was the pulse of foo fighters. when taylor hawkins joined foo fighters in 1997, he was their third drummer. but his connection with dave grohl was instantaneous. he's an amazing drummer. we have a mutual respect for each other, it's awesome you know. born in texas but raised in california, hawkins fell in love with the drums the first time he sat behind a kit in his neighbour's garage at the age of ten. i took to it immediately. that day, there was a lightning bolt shot into me, and it was like... i was like, i'm a drummer, that's what i'm going to do. he came to prominence playing with alanis morissette before

volunteering his services to foo fighters. he would often interrupt concerts to perform covers of his favourite band queen. foo fighters had been due to play a festival at columbia a festival in colombia at the time of his death. organisers lit candles on the stage and foo fighters posted a short statement online saying his musical spirit and infectious laughter will live on with all of us for ever. without that energetic and charismatic playing, the band will never be the same. taylor hawkins, who's died at the age, of 50. lots more still to come, stay with us on the bbc. i will be back in a

few minutes with the headlines. hello. another glorious day with spring sunshine and warmth. west was certainly best, high teens quite widely. in north wales, a high of 20 degrees during the afternoon. slightly different story along the north norfolk coast, with a lot of low grey cloud coming in off the north sea. temperatures struggled, down at 10 degrees in the afternoon. and this low cloud will tend to push in off the north sea over the next few hours, so may well linger anywhere south of hull. that's going to prevent temperatures from falling lower than four, five, six degrees. cooler clearer skies further north

and west. and that is likely to be where the best of the sunshine is going to be throughout the day. so west is best once again. the cloud should start to thin and break places, with glimpses of sunshine. where it lingers, those temperatures may struggle. ten or 11 degrees. and to the west, high teens. as we close out sunday, it looks like the high pressure starts to ease its grip a little and allows in this weather front. that's going to bring an increase in cloud generally across the country over the next few days. a lot of low cloud first thing in the morning. patchy mist and fog forming, maybe a few showers across north wales, northern england and into eastern scotland as well. temperatures not quite as high, we are looking at around 12—16 widely across the country, but only six in the northern isles. that is the colder air sitting behind that cold front, and it is the colder air that will gradually sink southwards. taking its time to arrive into southern england, but will gradually do so. we will start to see the change

really from tuesday onwards. again, a lot of cloud around in comparison to of late. hopefully some breaks and brief glimpses of sunshine. more frequent showers sitting across the far north. top temperatures generally around 9—13, and that trend does continue. it means that we run the risk of some wintry showers, even from time to time at lower levels as well, quietening down as we head into the weekend. don't forget, if you are off to bed, we are going to put the clocks forward during the early hours, as british summer time begins early on sunday morning.

this is bbc news ? welcome if you re watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories? multiple explosions are heard in the western city of lviv — smoke rises over the ukrainian city as russian rocket attacks continue. president biden visits poland where he met ukrainian refugees and addressed crowds in warsaw. he had this message about vladimir putin. for god's sake, this man cannot remain in power. with the continuous missile attacks in the capital kyiv and surrounding areas — we assess the destruction left behind.

in one of its largest military exercises in recent years, nato has been simulating its response to an attack on a member state. it's been taking place in norway, which shares a border with russia and was planned before the invasion of ukraine. but as our defence correspondent jonathan beale reports ? the war has given the training a sharper focus. gunfire. another neighbour of russia has been invaded. this is northern norway, but it is just an exercise — a test for nato allies to come to its defence. something nato says it will do to protect a member state, though not for ukraine. but what's happened in ukraine has suddenly made this training feel more real. an exercise like this, it's really good to have, uh, to prove to countries

like russia and other foreign states that you don't want to mess with nato. i think there have been some discussions about if the co—response should take place, but i think it's more important to do it now than ever. and what signal does it send to russia, do you think? that we're willing to fight. we will not give up our land. exercise cold response in norway is one of nato's largest, involving 30,000 military personnel from 27 countries. it was planned long before russia invaded ukraine, but russia's been building up its military presence in the arctic, too — one reason why british and american marines are also stepping up their training here in this harsh, unforgiving environment. president putin wanted less nato near his border. what he's getting is more. notjust more exercises like this, but thousands more nato troops stationed along nato's eastern

flank, all the way from the baltic to the black sea. it's notjust nato allies taking part. so are finland and sweden, with a long history of neutrality. but both countries have seen a recent surge in public support tojoin nato. russia's war in ukraine is forcing more of europe to pick sides. the military is ready, i if the political decision — and there is a decision tojoin, but it's not up to us _ to make that decision. russia's war in ukraine has sent shockwaves throughout the world. i met borisjohnson yesterday... and the head of nato, who met troops taking part in cold response, says the consequences will be felt for many years to come. resident putin is getting exactly the opposite of what he wants. he wants less nato at his borders, he's getting more nato at his borders. he wants to divide nato.

he has actually united, is uniting nato. but there's still a limit as to what nato is willing to do. it stands ready to defend its members, but it won't be using its military power to intervene in ukraine. jonathan beale, bbc news, narvik, norway. sean corbett is a recently retired senior officer in the royal air force. my colleague ben boulos asked him whether he considers these military exercises to be significant. these were preplanned and would have been planned very much in advance. however, i think you are seeing an additional impetus and of course that is all added to by the deployments forward of some of the equipment, we have seen the patriots going down to poland and now i see the uk have offered the sky sabre system as well, air defence system, so this is all part of a much bigger play to bolster the eastern flank of nato.

and this decision, or rather the purported announcement that the kremlin has given out, focusing on stage two of its invasion and that being in the donbas, in the eastern part of ukraine, how, what is the significance of that and does it look, from what we are seeing, as though that is actually what they are doing or does it not tally? this is an interesting one, actually, one to watch. i think the most significant thing about it is that it wasn't actually putin that made that announcement, it was the deputy chief of the general staff. now, what that allows putin to do is to disavow himself from that statement if that is in fact not what he intends. it would be sensible military, because they are fighting on too many access right now, once again we have seen the russians overextend their supply lines and they do need to consolidate, now if that is around donbas, that would make a lot of sense, because it

reduces their supply lines. if they are going to do that, though, you know, they are going to need a significant reorganisation and we are talking probably ten days or so to be able to achieve that. that is by no means, it is very early days yet, we just do not know if that is happening or not. and then, despite the kremlin saying this, we have, in the last couple of hours, heard these explosions in the west of the country, in the city of lviv. do you think this could be deliberate sort of confusion creating tactics, you know, to try come out to be saying one thing and doing another, deliberately, to cause uncertainty about their strategy? there will be a little bit of that, yes, but i think the location tells the story for itself. president biden is not that far away, anyway, so it might be sending a bit of a message, but lviv is a root out, obviously, for refugees, but obviously it is a route in almost certainly for equipment

and resupply is from nato. we have seen a little bit more and there has been some shocking indiscriminate targeting, but we have seen a little bit more deliberate targeting recently, of things like ammunition dumps and oilfacilities. so this sort of speaks to the sustainment of the ukrainian forces, as well as the russian forces. and then, i understand that you yourself have held senior positions within nato in the past, in terms of what we are seeing and the way that the nato members are working together and have been pulled together by all of this, do you feel that their cooperation, their response, their relationships are stronger, perhaps, than president putin expected they would be? almost certainly, but i think there is a cause and effect here. i think putin's actions have actually catalysed that to happen again. you know, it is the consolidation, it is the article four, article five piece that has really brought them together again.

there will be a huge amount of planning that has been going on in the past few weeks, in the nato summit and then in the next one injune, that will be literally to underscore that solidarity, as well as to rubber—stamp some of the planning and some of the deployments that are ongoing. and then the significance of president biden being in warsaw to meet ukrainian government ministers and also to give a speech as one of the leading, if not the pre—eminent member of the nato alliance, what do you make of the optics, the message that sense of all of this happening in one of the most eastern members of the alliance? i think that is predominantly reassurance. obviously poland are taking a big brunt of certainly the refugee side, but also some of the equipment that has been going into ukraine, and of course to make the ukrainians, so there is a practical side and i also think

this is messaging to all of those eastern states that are right on the buffer with putin, that we are serious about helping you. sean corbett speaking to us earlier. the oscars ceremony will be getting underway in los angeles this weekend — and this year the war in ukraine — has been having a sobering impact on the proceedings. the war is affecting everything — from oscars fashions — to nominated films which have gained a special resonance. the bbc�*s tom brook reports. hollywood's biggest night of the year is taking place more than 6000 miles from kyiv in ukraine, but the war is on the minds of many attending the ceremony. some stars are uneasy. it is very difficult to think about getting dressed up in fancy dresses and going to parties, you know, the party aspect of it, the excess, is really hard to hold in your mind at the same time as what is happening in ukraine. the nominees for best picture... the war has also change the way in which some of the movies in the best

picture race are being perceived. sir kenneth branagh believes his possible best picture winner, belfast... we're looking to cleanse l the community a wee bit. you wouldn't want to be the odd man out. | the semiautobiographical story of his own family's life upended by the troubles in northern ireland in the 19605... we are going to have to leave belfast. it is pertinent to the suffering in ukraine. in the world we live in, the kinds of appalling events that are happening in ukraine, art can play its part in that. the story of belfast, i think, lets people see how vital, even while communities are being torn apart, to try and hold onto that which bonds them and unites them. and flee, an oscar—nominated animated documentary is one film in the academy awards race that has found real relevance because of the war and possibly gained some oscar votes as a result. it is the story of amin, a refugee fleeing from the

taliban in afghanistan more than 20 years ago. the danish director believes amin�*s story helps us understand the mindset of refugees everywhere, including those fleeing from ukraine. it really gives spotlight to a very important - subject, to me personally, i but also to the world, i think, right now we are seeing millions of refugees in_ europe and in the world, ukraine, i through from history and we are able to get some nuance and perspective to refugee experience. _ i think it is really important to us. | the bravery of the people of ukraine. at awards events in recent weeks, many winners have expressed their support for ukraine. the babies in ukraine. the academy did not respond to a request for information on what they are planning to do at the ceremony in relation to ukraine, if anything, but it needs to get its messaging right. the oscars is on a slippery slope,

losing its cultural relevance in a way that has not quite hit home. last year, it got its lowest ratings ever. it cannot afford to be out of touch with the cultural zeitgeist at a time of war. tom brooke, bbc news, los angeles. now on bbc news ros atkins takes a look at the untruths that russia is spreading about nazis in ukraine. vladimir putin has given several reasons for his invasion of ukraine. this is one of them. translation: we will be aiming at demilitarisation and denazification of ukraine. at a recent putin rally, a banner declared, for a world without nazism. putin has described a gang of drug addicts and neo—nazis who settled in kyiv and took the entire ukrainian people hostage. russia's claims about nazis in ukraine are a mix of falsehoods and distortions. for a start, ukrainians are not being held hostage by nazis. president volodymyr zelensky, he isjewish, he has relatives who died in the holocaust

and he is president because he won 73% of the vote in 2019. the main far right candidate reached 1.6% and that result is part of a broader shift. in the 2012 parliamentary election, the main far—right party won 10%, in 2014 it was 6% and in 2019 it was 2%. no far right groups have any formal little power in ukraine and based on polling and results, the far right is much less popular in ukraine than, for example, the leader of the far right in france, marine le pen. far right groups, though, do exist in ukraine and russia's focus on them is not new. the word denazify, the idea that ukraine has been overrun by the nazis is something that russian propaganda has been talking about for eight years, since the first invasion of ukraine in _ 2014. ukraine wasn't and isn't being run by nazis but what happened eight years ago is relevant here. that is because in late 2013, under pressure from putin, ukraine 's then

president backed out of a co—operation deal with the eu. huge protest followed, as would a crackdown and in time he would flee to russia. this was a challenge to putin's ability to influence ukraine and he retaliated. first, russia annexed crimea and then it backed separatists in parts of eastern ukraine and this is where the story connects back to the far right, because in 2014, the ukrainian military was much smaller than it is now, it was struggling and brigades of volunteers joined the fight against the separatists and some of them had far right elements, the most high—profile was this one, the azov battalion. it was set up by this man, who has a history of racist and anti—semitic views and in 2014, the bbc�*s steve rosenberg spoke to him.

this is the azov emblem being shown to steve there. it is a pagan symbol known as wolfsangel and a version of it was used by some ss units in nazi germany. this man is an expert in ukraine and nationalism and he has looked at this, writing, the wolfsangel has far right connotations, but it is not considered a fascist symbol by the population in ukraine. that may be, but back in 2015, azov acknowledged that some of its members held nazi views and the spokesperson told usa today that only 20% of the group's members are nazis and he sought to make a distinction, using one fighter as an example. now, the degree of nazi sentiment in azov is impossible to verify but

this quote is relevant because by this quote is relevant because by this time azov had become part of the ukraine national guard and was under government command and there was one main reason for that. and in 2014, with russia backing separatists, urgent military considerations trumped all others, ukraine was under attack and its then president called azov our best warriors. in 2015 he was asked by the bbc about the far right lengths of the group, his reply was blunt. translation: don't listen to russian propaganda. russia has used azov and propaganda. russia has used azov and propaganda for years and as we assess claims about the role in ukraine, context is vital. ukraine's armed forces totalled 250,000 plus 50,000 national guard and azov was part of the national guard with

around 1000 volunteer fighters. it is a tiny fraction of the ukrainian military. it is also not the same force as it was in 2014. translation: azov opened its recruitment to the whole of ukrainian society and eventually this radical call was drowned out by the mass of newcomers thatjoined the mass of newcomers thatjoined the regiment because it was an elite unit. while the membership was evolving, the founder also left to start a new far right political party, a party that has failed to achieve any electoral success, but that azov regiment he left behind is high—profile and mainstream. this is the view of the ukrainian government. translation: the only nazi elements we have on the territory of ukraine now are the russian fascist army. in the last few days volodymyr zelensky announced that the commander of azov in mariupol will receive the highest national military award, but despite the acclaim and evolving membership,

questions about neo—nazi links remain. injanuary, ajournalist remain. injanuary, a journalist reported that he had seen remain. injanuary, ajournalist reported that he had seen a remain. injanuary, a journalist reported that he had seen a azov veteran wearing nazi symbols. there is no evidence that such sentiment is no evidence that such sentiment is widespread. i is no evidence that such sentiment is widespread-_ is no evidence that such sentiment is widespread-— is widespread. i was looking at the azov battalion _ is widespread. i was looking at the azov battalion social _ is widespread. i was looking at the azov battalion social media - is widespread. i was looking at the j azov battalion social media activity on website and all they talk about is fighting the russian forces and there is very little in terms of extremist anti—migrant or xenophobic rhetoric. find extremist anti-migrant or xenophobic rhetoric. �* , ., extremist anti-migrant or xenophobic rhetoric. �* , extremist anti-migrant or xenophobic rhetoric. , , , ~ ., rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment _ rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment that _ rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment that is _ rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment that is part _ rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment that is part of - rhetoric. and so it is best azov regiment that is part of the - regiment that is part of the ukrainian resistance and just as in 2014, its focus is the donbas region including the breakaway republics and the city of mariupol. it is close to the sea of azov that gives the regiment its name and it is also where azov made its name back in 2014 where it successfully defended the city as mariupol is bombarded by the city as mariupol is bombarded by the russians now alongside other

ukrainian forces, it is trying to do so again. its presence in mariupol once more makes it central to the false narrative from russia. we remember the maternity hospital bombing in the city, afterwards the russian said this. translation: at the un security council, facts were proffered by our delegation saying that the maternity hospital had been taken over by azov battalion and other radicals. there is no evidence that azov were based there, no evidence it was a military facility. then there is the attack on the mariupol theatre sheltering civilians. russia accuses azov of doing this and there is no evidence that this is true. so, while any azov volunteers having nazi sympathies is shocking, neo—nazis are not the threat that russia describes, but perhaps this is not about an actual threat and rather about an actual threat and rather about something else entirely. the new york times writes about how the word nazi...

putin is looking to the past to create motivation in the present. this is the historian shane o'rourke. putin has his reasons to do this, but he does not have the facts. just after the russian invasion 150 historians who study genocide in nazism released a statement. in it they argue... the rhetoric is factually wrong. nazis do not hold ukraine hostage not launching attacks on ukrainians. there is no evidence to support this kind of claim.

there is no evidence to support this kind of claim-— there is no evidence to support this kind of claim. ukrainians heat these neo-nazi kind of claim. ukrainians heat these nee-nazi grouns — kind of claim. ukrainians heat these neo-nazi groups and _ kind of claim. ukrainians heat these neo-nazi groups and they _ kind of claim. ukrainians heat these neo-nazi groups and they pray - neo—nazi groups and they pray for russia _ neo—nazi groups and they pray for russia and — neo—nazi groups and they pray for russia and for somebody else to liberate — russia and for somebody else to liberate ukrainian society for nazi groups _ liberate ukrainian society for nazi ”mus, ~' ., ., , liberate ukrainian society for nazi u-rous. ~' . ., , ., ., groups. ukrainians do not need liberated from _ groups. ukrainians do not need liberated from nazis, _ groups. ukrainians do not need liberated from nazis, to - groups. ukrainians do not need liberated from nazis, to the - liberated from nazis, to the president this idea is pure fiction. translation: it is already the 25th day of the russian military trying in vain to find nazis from whom they allegedly want to defend our people. just as they are trying in vain to find ukrainians— just as they are trying in vain to find ukrainians who _ just as they are trying in vain to find ukrainians who will - just as they are trying in vain to find ukrainians who will greet . just as they are trying in vain to - find ukrainians who will greet them with flowers — find ukrainians who will greet them with flowers-— with flowers. that search will continue to _ with flowers. that search will continue to be _ with flowers. that search will continue to be in _ with flowers. that search will continue to be in vain - with flowers. that search will| continue to be in vain because with flowers. that search will - continue to be in vain because while the evolution of the azov regiment deserve scrutiny, neo—nazis and the far right do not play the role in ukraine that russia describes. they didn't in 2014 and they do not now. the authorities in shanghai say the chinese city is too important to the national and world economy to go into full covid lockdown. the statement suggests china may be ready to abandon its zero—covid strategy, despite a rising

number of infections. shanghai recorded more than two thousand new cases on saturday. in the past, china locked down entire towns and cities following the discovery ofjust a few infections. but in shanghai, the authorities are closing down only affected neighbourhoods and relying on self—testing. formula one has confirmed the saudi arabian grand prix will go ahead despite friday's missile attack on an oil facilty 12 miles from thejeddah circuit. f1 and its governing body, the fia, said they have been provided "full and detailed assurances that the event is secure". drivers met for several hours until early on saturday to discuss their position. houthi rebels in neighbouring yemen said they had targeted the oil facility. its one of the biggest and most expensive yachts ever built — longer than a football pitch — with a disco that turns

into a swimming pool. reports suggest it belongs to president putin, but its true ownership is wrapped up in secrecy. its now in dock in italy but hasn t been seized by the authorities unlike some other yachts belonging to oligarchs. angus crawford reports. the scheherazade, the ultimate in yacht chic, a billionaire's plaything. the question is, which billionaire? it's still not clear if that's president putin himself or one of his close friends. 140 metres in length, difficult to hide as it's refitted in this italian dock. it's thought to have cost more than $700 million to build. there are two helipads on there, nine decks of luxury, enough room for you to entertain 19 of your closest, personal friends and the taps in the bathrooms? well, they're gold, of course. paolo is furious. he's a local union boss. the boat, he says,

is cloaked in secrecy. translation: it's totally cut off. silent. they wish to say nothing, to hide. but should workers have to hide, or should we work in the open and be proud? the russian crew and british captain disappeared overnight, replaced by a brand new team. we're told it's protected by armed guards, and workers have to strip and go through a metal detector before they can even get on board. locals who know the shipyard well are split about what should happen. she thinks it should be confiscated and the money used for something good. he says it will never be seized, the authorities hands are tied. it is his, you know, he has paid

for it and they have produced it. so maybe make sure that it doesn't go into anything that can be used for war, military or that. but if it is a leisure yacht, i don't think it should be taken from him. but if it isn't seized when the refit is done, it'll leave. the scheherazade secrets sailing with her. angus crawford, bbc news, marina di carrara, italy. denmark footballer christian eriksen has scored with his first touch — less then two minutes into his return to international football. he was playing for his country for the first time since he suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed during euro 2020 last june. he has since had to have a device fitted to regulate his heart. eriksen — who has recently restarted his professional career with brentford in the premier league — came on as a second half substitute in a friendly game with the netherlands. coming up is the news at ten o'clock

with my colleague live in lviv, ben brown. for now, that is it for me. good evening. it has been another glorious day for most of us with a lot of spring sunshine and warmth but west was best, high teens quite widely and in north wales we saw a high of 20 degrees during the afternoon. slightly different story in the north norfolk coast, a lot of low and grey cloud coming in from the north sea and temperature struggle in the middle part of the afternoon. this low cloud will tend to push on from the north sea over the next few hours and it may linger anywhere south of hope—macro. it will prevent temperatures from falling lower than four or 5 degrees, cooler and clearer skies in the north west, that's where the best of the sunshine will be in the morning unlikely to be with the best

of the sunshine will be throughout the day. west is best once again. the cloud should start thin and break but where it lingers, the temperatures will struggle, ten or 11 degrees in the west high teens not out of the question. as we close out sunday, it looks likely that high pressure starts to ease its grip and allowing this weather front to move in. that is going to bring an increase in cloud generally across the country over the next few days and a lot of low cloud first thing in the morning, patchy mist and fog forming and a few showers across north wales, the north of england and into the east of scotland as well. temperature is not as high, around 12 — 16, but only 6 degrees in the northern isles, that is the cold air sitting behind that cold front. it is the colder air that will sink its way slowly south, taking its time to arrive into the south of england but it will gradually do so and we will start to see the change from tuesday onwards.

a lot of cloud around in comparison to light. hopefully some breaks and brief glimpses of sunshine, more frequent showers in the far north as well. top temperatures generally around 9—13 but cooler in the far north and that trend continues. we run the risk of wintry showers, even from time to time at lower levels. squatting down heading into the weekend. don't forget, if you are off to bed, the clocks go forward in the early hours as british summer time begins early on sunday morning. good night.

president biden calls the russian leader vladimir putin a butcher — and says he cannot stay in power. after meeting ukrainian refugees in poland, he had this warning for moscow, as the war rages on. don't even think about moving on one single inch of nato territory. as the president prepared to speak, russian missiles hit a fuel depot here in lviv, close to the polish border. also tonight... prince william and kate reflect on their time in the caribbean, at the end of their week long tour. and tributes to the foo fighters' drummer, taylor hawkins, who's died at the age of 50.