this is bbc news — the headlines at 4: finland has confirmed it will apply for nato membership in response to russia's invasion of ukraine — sweden is also expected to apply. a british military intelligence assessment suggests russia may have lost a third of its ground forces since the start of its invasion of ukraine. president biden says america must do all it can to end hate—filled domestic terrorism — after ten people are killed in a shooting in buffalo. the uk government says it wouldn't be deterred from taking action over post—brexit trading arrangements in northern ireland to try to help restore power—sharing at stormont. and, a triumphant ukraine wins the eurovision song contest — after claiming the popular vote.

coming up at a30, the media show — ros atkins speaks to the chief executive of channel 4 about its future. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. finland's government has announced it will apply to join nato. its parliament is expected to approve the application within days. sweden is likely to do the same. nato foreign ministers, who are meeting in berlin, say they want a rapid accession because of the crisis in ukraine. the secretary general of nato, jens stoltenberg, welcomed finland's application, and said it would increase nato�*s shared security. president putin has already called finland's move "a mistake." from berlin, our europe

correspondent, nick beake, reports. a fresh aerial attack lights the sky above the besieged mariupol steelworks. this is where the last of the city's defenders have been holed up, a final ukrainian stand against a relentless russian bombardment. but as well as by land and by sea, russia continues its assault from the air, focusing its fight on the donbas region. here in the german capital, foreign ministers from nato countries shoulder—to—shoulder, pledging support for ukraine. and now preparing to welcome two new members with finland confirming today it will seek to join the alliance. we have reached today an important decision in good cooperation between the government and the president of the republic. we hope that the parliament will confirm the decision to apply for nato membership during the coming days. it will be based on a strong mandate.

the uk is among the countries giving their full backing. we were very pleased to be joined by our friends, finland and sweden. if they do apply to join nato, the uk is strongly supportive of that. sweden and finland joining the western military alliance is not just about the symbolism of two more flags being planted here. it would double the length of the land borders between russia and nato countries. it's the sort of expansion vladimir putin was desperate to avoid. but turkey has said it could block any enlargement, although its foreign minister has been stressing solidarity this weekend and prompting hopes any opposition could be overcome. beake, bbc news, berlin. let's hear more from jens stoltenberg, at that news conference in the last hour. if they decide to apply, this would be a historic moment.

their membership in nato would increase our shared security, demonstrate that nato's door is open, and that aggression does not pay. today, allies discussed our strong support for ukraine, the further strengthening of nato's deterrence and the longer term implications of the war, including our future stance towards russia. russia's war in ukraine is not going as moscow had planned. they have failed to take kyiv. they are pulling back from around kharkiv. their major offensive in donbas has stalled. russia is not achieving its strategic objectives. president putin wants ukraine defeated, nato down,

north america and europe divided. but ukraine stands, nato is stronger than ever, europe and north america are solidly united. joining us now is dr christine ages — associate professor in politics and international relations from the university of melbourne. lets look at sweeting. what do you think explains how quickly public opinion has to endure in favour of joining nato? let's look at sweden. public opinion is currently tracking out at about the 60% rate. in the

case of sweden, it's been a long time coming in many ways. sweden has been deeply engaged with nato for the last 20 or so years, much more so than it had been previously. this is largely due to a lot of insecurity that has built up around its region as a result of russian excursions, for instance, into swedish airspace and its sovereign waters. there has been a long debate within political parties as to whether swedish membership in nato is something that can be achieved. this has been something that i think it is harderfor the this has been something that i think it is harder for the sweets to pass than the finns because they have a very different relationship with their neutrality policies. —— for

their neutrality policies. —— for the swedes to pass. for a long time, nato members have been... some argue a decision as _ nato members have been... some argue a decision as big — nato members have been... some argue a decision as big as _ nato members have been... some argue a decision as big as this _ nato members have been... some argue a decision as big as this should _ nato members have been... some argue a decision as big as this should be - a decision as big as this should be put to a referendum, but that's not going to happen. while you think that is? for going to happen. while you think that is? ., ., , ., going to happen. while you think thatis? ., ., , ., , that is? for a number of reasons. both finland _ that is? for a number of reasons. both finland and _ that is? for a number of reasons. both finland and sweden - that is? for a number of reasons. both finland and sweden are - that is? for a number of reasons. i both finland and sweden are worried about any russian misinformation campaign that could sway the debates somewhat. there is a generalfeeling in a sweden that there is now a broader question around the question of nato membership. polls are showing it is the highest in a public opinion that we have seen in terms of a response to the possibility of warming up to nato membership. in some sense, the debate is being portrayed as though

it is almost a done deal. however, there are concerns from the greens, some elements of the social democratic party that this is moving fast. ~ ., democratic party that this is moving fast. ~ . ., ., ., fast. what about the actual threat to sweden? _ fast. what about the actual threat to sweden? the _ fast. what about the actual threat to sweden? the threat _ fast. what about the actual threat to sweden? the threat i - fast. what about the actual threat to sweden? the threat i guess . fast. what about the actual threat| to sweden? the threat i guess has been debated _ to sweden? the threat i guess has been debated in _ to sweden? the threat i guess has been debated in terms _ to sweden? the threat i guess has been debated in terms of- to sweden? the threat i guess has been debated in terms of what - to sweden? the threat i guess has i been debated in terms of what russia may do should sweden join nato. been debated in terms of what russia may do should swedenjoin nato. 0ne may do should swedenjoin nato. one of the key aspects yet is that russia has consistently won sweden and finland there would be repercussions if theyjoined nato. —— russia has consistently warned sweden and finland. some analysts have a look at this in terms of whether they would be a greater nuclear threat, although others' content that nuclear forces are already stationed quite close in the region. they are saying that there is no compunction, for instance, to

invade non—nato members, like ukraine. sweden is now looking at its position and thinking if this can happen in ukraine, it can possibly happen here. this is what i think is actually swaying a lot of the debate, about whether nato membership make sweden and the nordic region more or less secure at this time. we nordic region more or less secure at this time. ~ ., ., ~' nordic region more or less secure at this time. ~ ., ., ~ ., this time. we look then at the diplomatic _ this time. we look then at the diplomatic impact _ this time. we look then at the diplomatic impact of - this time. we look then at the diplomatic impact of the - this time. we look then at the diplomatic impact of the war l this time. we look then at the | diplomatic impact of the war in ukraine. let's look at the situation on the ground now. the ministry of defence says russia is likely to have lost a third of the ground combat forces it committed to the invasion. the intelligence assessment said the russian offensive had stalled and fallen behind schedule. 0vernight, a russian missile strike hit the western region of lviv, from wherejoe inwood reports. it was last night, just as the sounds of the celebration of ukraine's eurovision victory were dying down.

they were replaced by the sound of air raid sirens, not an unfamiliar sound in this part of the country. when we woke up, we were told that six missiles, maybe more, had come over. two had been shot down, but four hit a military installation just near here. often when it is a military target we are not told what happened, but we know it was destroyed completely. the authorities said there were no casualties however. let's move on to this military intelligence assessment that russia could have lost a third of its ground combat forces it has committed in this invasion. given what you have seen since you have been there, is it credible? absolutely. if you have seen some of the images coming out, for example, the satellite and drone images of the attempted russian crossing of the siverskyi donets river a few days ago, it should not come as much of a surprise.

there were between 70—80 vehicles destroyed, tanks, armoured personnel carriers and trucks completely wiped out by artillery fire. it sounds a lot, a third, and it really is. i think it is extraordinary it is credible. that it is credible. they have lost a vast number of troops. with these things it is hard to know exactly the truth of the matter. of course the british ministry of defence is not impartial in this matter, a lot of the damage done to russian forces has come from weaponry that they have provided. the full bloodied retreat from around kyiv and around kharkiv now, there have been a large number of military blunders, even disasters, for russia in this campaign. there are other areas where they have advanced and succeeded, but in the main this has not been a successful campaign, either in tactics or strategic terms for the russians.

to the us now and the latest on that shooting which killed ten people. president biden says the united states must do everything in its power to end what he called hate—filled domestic terrorism. the shooting happened in a supermarket in the city of buffalo in new york state. most of the victims were black. an 18—year—old man, who's white, has been charged with murder in the first degree. from new york, nada tawfik reports. a busy grocery store in a predominantly black community — this was the shooter's intended target. the horror started immediately in the parking lot. as the gunman emerged from his car heavily armed and wearing tactical gear, he shot four people, killing three of them. to eyewitnesses, it was clear he came to do maximum damage. when i first saw him shooting, he shot a woman, he shot a deacon, he shot another woman. and then, he went in the store and started shooting again. a retired buffalo police officer was working security, and shot the gunman. but he was unharmed because of his armour.

the shooter then returned fire, killing the security guard. the entire horrific episode of people being killed in cold blood in the store was streamed live online. the suspect was taken into custody alive, after putting his gun to his neck and threatening to shoot himself. he has been identified as an 18—year—old white male, and has been charged with murder in the first degree. officials said evidence showed the attack was racially motivated. we are investigating this incident as both a hate crime, and a case of racially motivated, violent extremism. a white supremacist who has engaged in an act of terrorism _ and will be prosecuted as such. in a cold—hearted, cruel, - calculating way, a military—style execution targeting people - who simply want to buy groceries. distraught community members have been gathering at the scene, trying to come to terms with the fact that a toxic mix of guns and racism has ended their neighbours' lives in an instant.

nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. brexit and northern ireland now. the business secretary, kwasi kwarteng, says he doesn't think there'll be a trade war with the eu over the northern ireland protocol. reports say the uk government is preparing to introduce legislation to strip away parts of the protocol. the protocol, agreed by borisjohnson and the eu, governs trade between britain and northern ireland after brexit. here's the business secretary. i don't think there's going to be a trade war, i don't think that's something that... they're talking about retaliation, they're talking about action they will take. there is a lot of talk, as we've seen over the last six years, the vote happened six years ago, and there's been a lot of talk and a lot of threats about what the eu will or won't do. that's up to them. as far as i'm concerned, our primary the duty as the british government is to look after

political stability in northern ireland, and if that means re—looking at the protocol, we absolutely have to do that. well, the prime minister will travel to belfast tomorrow for talks with the parties about restoring power—sharing. this is after the recent elections there. the labour front bencher, ed miliband, says borisjohnson should not use the protocol for political maneuvering. i'm afraid itjust proves, once again, that borisjohnson is not a serious person about the real issues that this country faces. he signed the agreement, he said it was a triumph, he said it was a triumph of the people of northern ireland. he refuses to negotiate on things like a veterinary agreement that could make a real difference. power—sharing collapsed two and a half months ago in northern ireland. he is finally getting around actually to going to northern ireland. what i hope he doesn't do is try and use northern ireland as a political weapon, because that will be absolutely the wrong thing to do. what he needs to do is engage seriously, engage seriously with the people of northern ireland and europe and find a solution to these issues.

not go round making threats. a trade war at this moment, of all moments, will be the worst thing. the headlines on bbc news: finland has confirmed it will apply for nato membership, in response to russia's invasion of ukraine. sweden is also expected to apply. a british military intelligence assessment suggests russia may have lost a third of its ground forces since the start of its invasion of ukraine. president biden says america must do all it can to end hate—filled domestic terrorism, after ten people are killed in a shooting in buffalo. sport — and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre, here's holly. some big results in the premier league today — more on that in a moment but first we're into the final

minutes of the women's fa cup final at wembley, as holders chelsea edge towards the double.. leading 2—1 over manchester city. chelsea took the lead in the first half — mille bright's cross in the 33rd minute — missed by city keeper ellie roebuck allowing sam kerr to bundle the ball in at the far post. manchester city levelled before half time — an excellent goal from lauren hemp. if that was good, then how about this from erin cuthbert? picking out the top left hand corner to put chelsea back in front. let's get the latest from wembley with about five minutes. this match is live on bbc one. the attendance was just over 19,000 at wembley, the attendance wasjust over 19,000 at wembley, over 19,000 at wembley, a cup final record. chelsea on the verge of their fourth fa cup.

all the reaction coming on bbc one and on the bbc iplayer. there was another twist in the premier league title race as leaders manchester city went 2—0 down at west ham but salvaged a point to draw 2—2. in a thrilling match at the london stadium, jarrod bowen scored twice for the home side in the first half. but the defending champions responded after the break with goals from jack grealish and this own goal from vladimir coufal. city had the chance to win it late on, but riyad mahrez had his penalty saved. it means pep guardiola side can retain the league title if they beat aston villa on the final day of the season. second—placed liverpool are four points behind, but have a game in hand. tottenham have moved into the top fourfor the moment, with a narrow 1—0 win over burnley. it was a penalty that settled it, given for a handball from ashley barnes on the stroke of halftime. referee kevin friend awarded the spot kick after consulting with var and having a second look. up stepped harry kane to slot

the ball home, his 21st penalty in a row for spurs. into the champions league places for the time being with arsenal in action tomorrow. nobody in the 18 yard box has appealed for a penalty. you could go inside an 18 yard box and put a camera in for how long before a ball comes in and you could probably pick out about 16 fouls. i just don't understand how far do you go back. how far do you go back for every corner, for every free kick? itjust doesn't make sense. leeds have kept alive their hopes of surival after a frenetic home draw with brighton, thanks to a late equaliser. everton could avoid the drop if they beat brentford later. leicester thrashed already relegated watford to consign them to a seventh defeat in eight league games. all the results are on the bbc sport website.

cricket australia said it was "shocked and saddened by the death of former australia cricketer andrew symonds who has died after being involved in a car crash. the 46—year—old all—rounder played 26 tests matches and nearly 200 one—day internationals between 1998 and 2009. he won two 50—over world cups and was part of australia's ashes winning side in 2006—07. former england captain michael vaughan is among those to pay tribute on social media, saying this doesn't feel real. andrew symonds, who's died aged 46. let's get the latest from wembley. just a few minutes left in the fa cup final. manchester city have equalised in atjust the last few minutes. the scoreline is now 2—2,

which looks like a repeat of yesterday's men's fa cup final. we could be heading to extra time, it may be penalties. you can follow this on bbc one right now, see if there will be a winner in these last four minutes. that is all your spot for now. a bit of breaking news on our top story we have been covering for the last few hours. we have a confirmation from reuters news agency that sweden's ruling party have seed they now back the country joining nato. the significance of this is that they are in charge in sweden, it means they have abandoned decades of opposition to this move. but since russia's invasion of ukraine they have decided to change policy, they are in favour of

joining nato, changing their position. this means that they should be handing in its application tojoin pretty soon. we have already heard earlier this morning finland have donejust heard earlier this morning finland have done just that. we expect in the book ahead both sweden and finland to apply to join nato. as we get more on that, we will bring it to you. today is the final day of the royal windsor horse show. the queen, who missed the state opening of parliament due to mobility issues, is expected to attend along with other royals. lets join our correspondent, helena wilkinson, who is at windsor for us this afternoon. i don't think we are going to know untiljust before the big performance here later on this evening as to whether the queen will be coming here. she has mobility issues but she did manage to come to the royal windsor horse show earlier this week, looking very happy and in

her element. it is of course one of the events she very much enjoys coming to, so fingers crossed she is able to come here later on this evening. let's find out more about the event itself. the tenant, your role in the event tonight? i the event itself. the tenant, your role in the event tonight?- the event itself. the tenant, your role in the event tonight? i have a sliuhtl role in the event tonight? i have a slightly unusual _ role in the event tonight? i have a slightly unusual role, _ role in the event tonight? i have a slightly unusual role, i _ role in the event tonight? i have a slightly unusual role, i am - slightly unusual role, i am supporting the musical ride. we are representing a small subsection of the charles ii court, wigs and flowery coats and all.- the charles ii court, wigs and flowery coats and all. what is your role tonight _ flowery coats and all. what is your role tonight in _ flowery coats and all. what is your role tonight in the _ flowery coats and all. what is your role tonight in the performance? l flowery coats and all. what is your i role tonight in the performance? i'm cominu on role tonight in the performance? i“n coming onjust before the musical ride. i am leading the retinue across the arena trying to keep our horses are nice and calm. then we just sit there nice —— and enjoy the show. we have been here for about nine days preparing and getting all

the timing right and the spacings and inoculating the horses to all the noise and these new experiences. we must have the time our building to events like this in our day—to—day training. to events like this in our day-to-day training. this is the first event _ day-to-day training. this is the first event in _ day-to-day training. this is the first event in the _ day-to-day training. this is the first event in the platinum - day-to-day training. this is the l first event in the platinum jubilee celebrations. what does it mean for you personally to be in at the arena this evening, hopefully with the queen watching on?— this evening, hopefully with the queen watching on? when you 'oin a reaiment queen watching on? when you 'oin a regiment nee — queen watching on? when you 'oin a regiment like the i queen watching on? when you 'oin a regiment like the household h queen watching on? when you join a| regiment like the household cavalry, thatis regiment like the household cavalry, that is one of the things you join for, to be part of the ceremonial lifeguard of the queen. i think to celebrate the constant strand of continuity at the queen has represented in the national consciousness is fantastic. tam consciousness is fantastic. tom cruse is supposed to be coming this evenina. ., �* ~ ., ., evening. i don't know how he will “am it evening. i don't know how he will jam it into _ evening. i don't know how he will jam it into the — evening. i don't know how he will jam it into the show, _ evening. i don't know how he will jam it into the show, maybe - evening. i don't know how he will jam it into the show, maybe she| evening. i don't know how he will i jam it into the show, maybe she will parachute into the show or something. parachute into the show or something-— parachute into the show or something. parachute into the show or somethin.. , , ., , . ., parachute into the show or somethina. , , ., , . ~ something. they show such a 15 pm this evening- _ something. they show such a 15 pm this evening. they _ something. they show such a 15 pm this evening. they hope _ something. they show such a 15 pm this evening. they hope as - something. they show such a 15 pm this evening. they hope as her - this evening. they hope as her majesty will be able to attend this evening. some other celebrities who

will be here this evening as well as tom cruse, dame helen mirren will be taking part and have as an acting role as elizabeth the first. to the eurovision song contest now. ukraine says it hopes to be able to host next year's competition after the country's emotional win in last night's final in italy. their entry, the kalush kalush 0rchestra, topped the leaderboard after winning the popular vote. sam ryder, the uk's entry, finished second, but led after the jury votes with his song, space man. 0ur correspondent, mark lowen, sent this report from turin. music: stefania, by the kalush 0rchestra. in the end they had it all — the sound, the sympathy, the success. ukraine's kalush 0rchestra went into eurovision as the favourite with a folk and hip—hop anthem to the lead singer's mother and now to their motherland now under attack, one member staying home to fight. # up in space, man!

it so almost went the uk's way, sam ryder�*s space man hoping to take his country to the galaxy of winners for the first time in 25 years. 183 points! as the public votes came in, he was brought down to earth and ukraine's star shone bright. cheering. all the way to kyiv where the winning song warmed hearts broken by war. this meant so much more than music or eurovision kitsch. it was a continent rallying behind a country in darkness, defending its european identity. we won here in the eurovision and now this whole feeling is like yes!

and we will win also in the war with russia. and all europe is with us. and it was feeling like we are all together. in ukraine we have war. it is not a time to have fun. but we need to have fun. we need to live. and we need to have understanding and a feeling of life. _ back in turin, sore heads but pride for the brits, too. has sam's result restored your faith in the uk's eurovision dream? yes. definitely. hopefully this is the beginning of something and we shall continue to have success. and hopefully our country i and the rest of europe starts to take us seriously again. italy hosted quite the party here. there was politics, too, with russia kicked out for taking europe back to war. but last night, at least, there was room for the fun. thank you so much. and so the hopes of bringing peace and eurovision to ukraine next year both, for now, in doubt. but europe is dancing to ukraine's tune, and that is what russia, too, will hear.

mark lowen, bbc news, turin. a pair of rare pangolins have made their debut at prague zoo. the pair — a male called guo bao and a female called run hou tang — were unveiled to the public after a month in quarantine following their arrival from taiwan. pangolins are the only mammals with scales entirely covering their bodies. the animals' arrival is emblematic of a u—turn in czech foreign policy in recent years. the government had been making overtures to china with the expectation of a couple of pandas for prague zoo, but has since become more pro—taiwan. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello there. it really is a messy picture out there at the moment. 0bviously we've seen a lot more cloud around today, some bursts of rain too. the rain in western scotland probably easing away, but further south into england the rain that we've seen

developing here will continue to push its way northwards, could be heavy, possibly even thundery as well, working its way upwards into southern scotland. if you're hoping to see the super blood moon later in the night, the best chance i think will be in northern scotland with some clearer skies. very warm and muggy night, those are the minimum temperatures. we start off quite cloudy tomorrow with some mist around too and these bursts of rain. the wetter weather continues to work its way northwards, where it will come to rest in scotland. eventually some sunshine coming through in northern ireland and developing more widely in england and wales, but still maybe a few thundery showers here and there. warmer in the sunshine, 22 or 23 degrees. underneath the cloud and rain in scotland, it's going to be quite a bit chilly here. through the rest of this week, we will continue to have some warmth and sunshine at times. but still that continued threat of some heavy and thundery downpours. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines — sweden's ruling social democrats have backed the countryjoining nato,

after finland also confirmed it will apply for nato membership, in response to russia's invasion of ukraine. a british military intelligence assessment suggests russia may have lost a third of its ground forces since the start of its invasion of ukraine. president biden says america must do all it can to end hate—filled domestic terrorism, after ten people are killed in a shooting in buffalo. the uk government says it wouldn't be deterred from taking action over post—brexit trading arrangements in northern ireland to try to help restore power—sharing at stormont. and a triumphant ukraine wins the eurovision song contest after claiming the popular vote. now on bbc news, the media show.