this is bbc news broadcasting in the uk and around the globe. i'm ben brown. our top stories: fierce street fighting in eastern ukraine — president zelensky says his forces are "holding on", but warns troops are running low on ammunition. an escalating row over the prospect of rail strikes across britain — the uk transport secretary says agency staff could be allowed to fill in for workers who walk out tens of thousands rally across the us to call for stricter gun laws in the wake of recent mass shootings. china says it'll fight to the very end to prevent taiwan

from being declared independent. and queen elizabeth ii becomes the world's second—longest serving monarch — only louis xiv of france has ruled for longer. hello and welcome to bbc news. ukrainian officials in the town of severodonetsk say they're still in control of the azot chemical plant where hundreds of civilians have been sheltering. the governor of the region said fierce fighting was cotinuing. it comes as ukrainian president volodymyr zelensky has said his troops are running low on ammunition as they try to repel russian invaders in the east. mr zelensky says his forces are "holding on" for now — as they engage in fierce street fighting — but he appealed for more

help from western powers. helena wilkinson has the latest. this is the east of ukraine, in the donbas region, it's one of the areas russian forces have focused their firepower. ukraine soldiers are still holding out here, but the intense fighting goes on. ukraine's army says it is running low on artillery shells. the ukrainian governor of the luhansk province claims they could hold on to the besieged city of severodonetsk, if western allies sent them enough long—range artillery. in ukraine's capital, kyiv, the european commission president met with ukraine's president, there to discuss ukraine's request for eu membership. president zelensky argued that the eu's future depended on letting his country in. translation: all of europe is a target for russia, - we are sure of it, and ukraine

is just the first stage in this aggression. this is why a positive eu response to the ukrainian application for membership can be a positive answer to the question of whether the european project has a future at all. the eu will decide next week whether ukraine should be given candidate status. you have done a lot in strengthening the rule of law but there still needs to be reforms implemented to fight corruption, for example. translation: very fruitful talks with the president - of the european commission ursula von der leyen, were held in kyiv today. i'm glad to note her sincerity. it is the european commission that will prepare a conclusion about our application. ukraine has provided all the necessary answers in a very short time and it was done in a proper way. in the south of the country, fighting has left villagers devastated. homes and churches

have been destroyed. ukraine now waits to find out if the eu will allow it to become a member. in the short—term, though, the country says it needs more weapons, and quickly, from the west, to be able to defend itself. helena wilkinson, bbc news. for more on this, let's speak to our correspondent, joe inwood, in kyiv. up—to—date with the latest from the battlefield and in particular the fight for the key town of severodonetsk. the main development overnight is a huge fire at the azot chemical works, a huge industrial complex in the centre of the city and ukrainian forces have fallen back to including 800 civilians who have taken shelter there and the whole city is under constant watch on bombardment and in particular this factory has been hit and we understand there has been a huge fire, explosion there, and many tonnes of oil have leaked out from

radiators. we do not know the exact status of the chemical plant and what the wider consequences could be but this is raising many fears for the safety of the soldiers and sides but particularly civilians as well. —— the soldiers inside. we have had many pleas from ukraine for more weapon supplies from the west but now they say they are running out of of shells. the battle in street markets by this matter is, this whole fight for the eastern donbas region has become an artillery battle and particularly trying to hit the enemy guns. we have heard from a senior security official here the russians are running out, they reckon they are outnumbered ten to one of 15 to one in terms of the number of guns they have. the russians fire ten times as many shells and rounds per day as the ukrainians can manage. it does not matter how accurate you are, when you're coming out of that level of

file you need to have more on the problem they are having is we have had a lot of promises from the mac western powers they will send more long—range artillery, particularly precision micelle rocket artillery, but much of it is not getting to the front lines. that is partly because it needs training, this is different equipment to the equipment ukrainians have used and have used in the past. it is natal rather than russian equipment. i was talking to the ukrainian ambassador to london this week and he was talking about the ungrateful to britain and the united states for arms supplies but less grateful to countries like france and germany which they feel are dragging their feet and france and germany which they feel are dragging theirfeet and making promises but not necessarily delivering. there is quite a lot of controversy around this, these are all the suggestions, accusations, but the germans in particular are

making promises but not following up on them and giving it ukrainians impression they are getting the support they need but not being followed through and we are seeing this diplomatically. the beginning of suggestions of splits imagine, but we we saw the chancellor of germany and the french president having a call with president vladimir putin and the suggestion was trying to find a diplomatic solution when the ukrainian say at the moment given the year invasion are still in full swing there really is no diplomatic solution here so we are seeing some criticism of those two powers but as you see a lot of gratitude, particular to the british and americans for the support they are giving. the uk transport secretary grant shapps has said the government

is preparing to lift a ban on agency staff filling in for striking workers. the potential change in legislation could allow companies to hire temporary workers to cover roles to prevent disruption. if the plan goes ahead, will not come in time to affect the planned walkout by 40,000 rail workers at the end of this month. for more on this, i'm joined by our political correspondent, pete saull. tell us more about what the government are thinking about the they are looking at an id and the 2015 conservative manifesto when david cameron was the british by minister, to repeal legislation that came in under tony blair in the 19905 that came in under tony blair in the 1990s that band agency temporary workers from coming in and filling in on strike days. that is one thing the government has already said it is looking at putting in place a minimum level of service and will strike days, so this is i suppose up of the rhetoric on it. the unions perhaps unsurprisingly not best

pleased with this and see it as a fundamental attack on the rights. the boss of the rmt, mick lynch, saying they will fight tooth and nail but this will not come in for any planned strikes, the first when only nine days away. legislation is to go through parliament first, so you probably will not have the effect of dissuading the workers of the stage but what might twist their arms as another idea proposed by the transport sector this morning to not allow them to work any overtime in the days after the strike to recoup some of the money they would have lost by withdrawing their labour. there are fears of wider spread industrial action over the summer. the mac there are and this is 40,000 workers as you said an introduction going out at the end ofjune and there are other strikes planned by other trades unions and strikes already on the london underground network and some people talking of

something of a summer of discontent in the uk on the public transport network. all the while, the economy is an pretty fragile place with the cost of living continue to grow up and people really struggling to deal with rising bills and that is one of the arguments that unions may, it is not fair to the arguments that unions may, it is not fairto cap the arguments that unions may, it is not fair to cap their pay, to freeze it as they see it in real terms, when things are going up by so much. but brandon lewis, who has been on the airwaves this morning, has made the airwaves this morning, has made the point that real workers in his view are earning more than the others rocket in the uk. tens of thousands of people have been demonstrating across the united states, demanding stricter gun laws in response to a series of mass shootings. president biden encouraged the protesters to keep marching, and called on congress to pass common sense gun safety legislation. the democrat— controlled house of representatives passed a package of gun reforms last week, but republicans in the senate

are likely to block them. barbara plett usher reports. another march against gun violence banging on the doors of the nation's capital. this is a movement powered by young people, demanding the country's leaders take action after yet another school shooting — a horrific massacre in uvalde, texas. if our government can't do anything to stop 19 kids from being killed and slaughtered in their own school, and decapitated, it's time to change who is in government! all: vote them out! again! vote them out! for years, congress has failed to pass gun safety measures, blocked by opposition from the gun lobby and the republican party. but people here feel now is the right time to renew their campaign.

rallies took place in hundreds of cities across the country, in new york, where a gunman recently killed ten people in a racist attack, and in florida, where a school shooting four years ago launched this movement. the theme of these rallies is this time will be different, meaning this time, there will be action on gun control. many of these people have been fighting for this for a long time. some have told me they feel more hopeful, rather than optimistic, but this is a time when the issue has captured the national attention in a very visceral way — we have to keep our kids safe. protesters have pushed through gun restrictions at the state level, but they want national action. do you feel that there is a bit of momentum around this issue? i think so, definitely, for our generation. this is one of our biggest pushes because we're the ones dying in schools, in movie theatres. it's been happening since before i can remember. something has to change. we can't keep letting our children die like this. but even here, a few minutes of panic. there was a disruption

onstage and people ran. the fear of a gun attack is alive and everywhere. earlier this week, a young survivor of the texas shooting described her terrifying experience to lawmakers. emotional testimony from the families brought the pain and horror to capitol hill. gavel bangs. hours later, the house passed gun control legislation, but republican senators will almost certainly reject it. some are working on a very modest compromise — that may have a chance. the nays are 204 — the bill is passed. the president told the marchers to keep up the pressure. keep marching. it's important. look, this has to become an election issue. is when people say, "i'm gonna — this is gonna affect my vote". too many people are dying needlessly. and what's even being proposed in the house and senate is marginal. i mean, it's important, but it's not

all that needs to be done. in uvalde, another vigilfor the dead. in public opinion, at least, the mood is shifting — americans agree the killing of children has to stop. more and more say that should involve national gun controls. barbara plett usher, bbc news, washington. police in the us state of idaho have detained 31 white supremacists and charged them with conspiracy to riot at a gay pride event. officers found them dressed in riot gear, with white balaclavas covering their faces. they wore arm patches and insignia that identified them as belonging to the patriot front hate group which calls for a white ethnostate in the united states. police said they had come from at least 11 states. china says it'll fight to the very end to prevent taiwan from being declared independent. speaking at a security meeting in singapore, china's defence minister said any foreign interference is doomed to failure — in a reference to the united states.

translation: we notice, separate to the us secretary of defense lloyd austin's remarks on the indo—pacific strategy to the strategy is an attempt to build an exclusive small group in the name of a free and open indo—pacific — to hijack countries in our region and to target one specific country. it is a strategy to create confrontation, to contain and encircle others. the bbc�*s nick marsh is in singapore. yesterday defence secretary lloyd austin laid out the american version for the indo pacific and general wei fenghe responded with some force, for other countries to mind their own business and he said the parliament of china was not a threat to others and it was neither wise nor possible to try to contain it,

and that includes the issue of taiwan. i am joined and that includes the issue of taiwan. iamjoined by and that includes the issue of taiwan. i am joined by a senior fellow at the international institute for strategic studies specialising in the chinese military. we get the impression that the stakes are higher than ever after hearing the speeches, is that the impression you get are just part of the theatre of these kinds of events? i of the theatre of these kinds of events? ., �* ~' of the theatre of these kinds of events? ., �* ~ ., , events? i don't think it was theatre. — events? i don't think it was theatre. i _ events? i don't think it was theatre, i think _ events? i don't think it was theatre, i think there - events? i don't think it was theatre, i think there was l events? i don't think it wasj theatre, i think there was a events? i don't think it was - theatre, i think there was a genuine effort by lloyd austin and wei fenghe to restate their formal positions on taiwan. for lloyd austin it was particularly potent regarding the statements of presidentjoe biden regarding taiwan stop and for general wei fenghe that is our domestic audience a home that needs to hit a set message so there was an effort to reemphasise those traditional lines. that being said, theissue traditional lines. that being said, the issue of ukraine played very

heavily on everybody�*s mind is the dataset message so there was an effort to reemphasise those traditional lines. that being said, theissue traditional lines. that being said, the issue of ukraine played very heavily on everybody�*s minds and whether or not we can compare the cases of type one ukraine is a different the relevance of the fort. ukraine dividing these military superpowers and dividing the world. on friday a significant meeting between lloyd austin and wei fenghe, the first significant meeting at this level since 2019. was there i thought in this very icy relationship? like i think the purpose of the meeting and the phone calls and face—to—face meetings we have seen between the two sides is to try to have opportunities to pass messages under the lines and re—engage again after quite a difficult few years between the two countries. . ~ difficult few years between the two countries. ., ~ , ., ,., difficult few years between the two countries. ., ~ , ., . ., countries. thank you so much for s-ueakin countries. thank you so much for speaking to _ countries. thank you so much for speaking to us- _ countries. thank you so much for speaking to us. this _ countries. thank you so much for speaking to us. this conference l countries. thank you so much for| speaking to us. this conference is wra -|n~ speaking to us. this conference is wrapping pp _ speaking to us. this conference is wrapping pp and _ speaking to us. this conference is wrapping pp and we _ speaking to us. this conference is wrapping up and we have - speaking to us. this conference is wrapping up and we have had - speaking to us. this conference is | wrapping up and we have had from speaking to us. this conference is - wrapping up and we have had from the

two major military superpowers, still deeply divided on pretty much every issue you can think of. but the dead meat and dialogue is happening, something ever more crucial given all the issues this region of the world faces at the moment. fierce street fighting in eastern ukraine — president zelensky says his forces are "holding on", but warns troops are running low on ammunition. the british government is looking at plans to change the law to allow agency staff to be brought in to cover for some striking workers. tens of thousands rally across the us to call for stricter gun laws,

in the wake of recent mass shootings. voting is under way in local elections in mainland france. the vote, which takes place in two stages, with run—offs being held a week from today, will elect 577 seats in the lower house of parliament. emmanuel macron, who won a second term as president in april, will be hoping to gain support among mps to support his legislative programme. with more on that — here's our news reporter azadeh moshiri. we did just have elections in france less than two months ago, but what's really on the line here is president macron's ability to implement his agenda. it's also a test to see whether the voters actually voted for him back in april or whether they were voting against his opponents. people like the far—right candidate, marine le pen. and he's going to face real challenges here if he doesn't win a majority in parliament, in particular in one scenario, if another group were to win that majority, because in france, when that happens, that group gets to approve president macron's very own prime minister.

it's a period that they'd call cohabitation in government, and it hasn't happened for two decades now. in terms of where he stands right now. president macron's party already has 345 seats in parliament. that's 56 more than he actually needs to have a majority. but many on the left have been banding together, and so he is very much facing a real challenge this time round. let's look at some live pictures coming from one polling station. the run—offs are held one week from today and electing 577 seats in the lower house of parliament. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. presidentjoe biden has said the us government will cover

the full cost of the response to wildfires in new mexico — after federal officials allowed planned burns to spread out of control. visiting the state — mr biden said the federal government had a responsibility to help new mexico recover. a us districtjudge in las vegas has dismissed a lawsuit against the football star cristiano ronaldo after accusing the complainant's attorney of bad—faith conduct. kathryn mayorga alleged that the portuguese player raped her at a hotel in 2009. ronaldo denies the accusation and has never been charged. in 2010 they reportedly reached an out—of—court settlement, a sum which it's believed ms mayorga was seeking to increase in this latest lawsuit. nicaragua's president daniel 0rtega has announced the closure of more than 90 non—governmental organisations. mr 0rtega has closed more than 550 ngos since nicaragua was swept by huge street protests four years ago. he says they've failed to register as foreign bodies under a new law

aimed at tackling money laundering. more now on the war in ukraine, and while the fighting could continue for months or even years, some efforts are already under way to repair the damage which has been caused. in particular, around the capital kyiv, which is now no longer under immediate threat of invasion by russian forces — but where the mines which were laid by both sides remain a hazard. experts have now been brought in to try to start clearing the explosives — joe inwood went to find out how. ukrainians are a resilient people, already back on the land. it's just a couple of months since these fields were the scene of fierce fighting and they still bear the scars. this network of fortifications were dug by the ukrainians as they prepared for the advance of the russian forces. but trenches aren't the only thing that remain under

the surface of these fields. anti—tank mines, as the family in this minibus discovered, are deadly and hidden all over the countryside. the halo trust are starting to remove them, but it will be a long process. it's a massive scale given the nature of the conflict, and it is very difficult to put an estimate on how long. there's huge work ahead. we're talking years, maybe decades, to clear ukraine. what we see at halo is the impact on the local level, it's civilians being killed. and it's notjust mines that are scattered over this once—peaceful land. 0lena shows with the collection of rockets that landed in herfields. but the real danger to her comes from cluster bombs. banned by most countries, the russians have used them liberally in their invasion of ukraine. 0lena takes me to the field where two landed. translation: you can | imagine how scared i am. the cluster bomb was behind a tree.

they took it away, but what if there is something left? as we were filming, the danger became apparent. just down the road from 0lena's house, a truck drove over a mine. these shots were taken by the halo team. so, as you can see, it was the rear right wheel of this truck that went of the anti—tank mine. thee's a huge crater back there. what's important is that roads like this are essential for the agricultural economy of this country and that agricultural economy is essential for feeding the world. well, i mean, the problem is, this is one of the breadbaskets of the world. the grain from here will go all over the world. and if the farmers can't plant it, then the rest of the world will suffer. there is already talk of a global food crisis caused by this ill—fated invasion. farming has always been a precarious business, now it is a life—threatening one as well. changing that will take many years. joe inwood, bbc news, kyiv.

mcdonald's in russia is set to reopen under a new name and a new ownership today. the new restaurant chain replacing mcdonald's in russia is called vkusno & tochka, meaning delicious, full stop. first customers will be allowed a taste the revised menu later today. the russian chain is scheduled to reopen 15 restaurants this weekend. mcdonald's temporarily halted its business in russia in march, later deciding to cease operations in russia altogether. the united states will no longer require air travellers to have proof of a negative covid—i9 test before entering the country.

officials said they were dropping the requirement due to the "tremendous progress" the country had made in the fight against the virus. the queen had a lot to celebrate last weekend — on tuesday it will be exactly five years since one of the uk's worst disasters of modern times — the grenfell tower fire, which killed 72 people.with a public inquiry and police investigation still underway — and nobody charged with any offence — many survivors and relatives of the dead say the long wait ayshea buksh reports. pain and sadness. anger and disbelief. chanting: we wantjustice! no—one from the council at all. no—one has seen anyone, ask anyone, no—one has seen anyone from the council. the fire at grenfell tower created

much personal and collective trauma. and, five years on, the public inquiry into what happened is still ongoing and there have been no arrests nor criminal charges. damel carayol lost two members of his family, his cousin, mary mendy, and her daughter, khadija saye. from day one, we suspected we would be on a long road, because of what happened, what led up to it, what the response was — we knew it would be a fight. and since it began, he's been closely following the evidence being presented in the inquiry. how has that impacted on you and your family? well, as the process has gone on, it feels like salt has been poured on our wounds. the results of the cladding being tested failed the fire test, and they were falsified. i'm not saying this, this is a matter of public record. they were falsified. and is this evidence or not? but, no, it can't be used. i mean, that's a painful, painful thing to happen.

with the requirements of the building regulation... ed daffarn survived the fire. as part of the residents' group, he warned kensington and chelsea council their refurbishment plans were a potentialfire risk. this play is based on those predictions. the fact that we're here discussing issues around cladding still being on so many buildings, so little progress on the white paper on social housing, and changes to people who live in social housing, the complete lack of progress on phase one recommendations makes moving on really difficult. and five years on, many people are realising that the path tojustice is taking much longer than they expected. the word is even embedded now in the local streets. for over four years, acava arts group and the al manaar mosque have been creating mosaics. these say �*justice' in the 35 different languages spoken by the people who died. they now line the route of the community remembrance known as the silent walk.

there are 72 gold flecks to represent each life that was lost, so it is powerful that we have now also been able to memorialise things that were important to the local community. you know, the silent walk, and it has now become part of our local history and our legacy. the community walk gathers at hope gardens, which are cultivated by marcia robinson and the local community. she says many here feel disillusioned yet still maintain their dignity and pride. i can only say i'm so proud of our younger generation around here. they never lived up to none of the very bad press that they was getting. so there wasn't no attacks on the police or the fire brigade, there wasn't no riots. we walked in dignity and we have done forfive years. as the grenfell community near this milestone of their fight forjustice, there's determination yet scepticism. and for the families whose loved ones are gone, patience amid their pain. waiting forjustice and change.

we have to learn certain lessons, you know, from everything that went wrong before, during, and after and try to fix things, you know. in their memory we carry on, we carry on fighting, really, we carry on living. ayshea buksh, bbc news. hello again. well, for many it's already been a lovely start to the day. we've had plenty of sunshine across the skies in england and wales. this was how we started off in norfolk. but looking deeper into the week ahead, it's going to get quite hot for some of us with temperatures towards the end of the week hitting the 30 degree mark — by a country mile, the hottest weather we've seen so far this year. but before we get there, today, we've got some blustery conditions with quite a bit of cloud in the north west, bringing scattered