live from london... this is bbc news. ukraine's president zelensky is visiting rome where he'll have an audience with the pope, and meet the italian president & prime minister. this is the scene in rome where the ukrainian president is due to meet italy's leaders. turkey's election candidates take part in the last few hours of campaigning, before the country goes to the polls. rail passengers across england are facing further disruption as members of the rmt union walk out on strike. stoppages are affecting 1a operators. and the fans are out, in liverpool, as excitement builds over

the eurovision song contest final. hello. i'm nancy kacungira. ukrainian president volodimir zelensky has arrived in the italian capital rome, where he'll meet italian political leaders and have an audience with the pope. we are showing you live shots at the president's residence in rome. italy's prime minister, giorgia meloni, has been one of ukraine's more vocal backers, although polls suggest that italian people overall are opposed to sending ukraine more weapons. mr zelensky tweeted that it was an important visit for what he said was the "approaching victory" for ukraine.

those live pictures there, in rhyme. live now to the bbc�*s sofia bettiza in rome. well, zelensky has said this is an important visit for his approaching victory. what message will he be trying to send?— victory. what message will he be trying to send? president zelensky has landed in _ trying to send? president zelensky has landed in rome _ trying to send? president zelensky has landed in rome about - trying to send? president zelensky has landed in rome about an - trying to send? president zelensky has landed in rome about an hour| trying to send? president zelensky - has landed in rome about an hour ago and was greeted by italy's foreign minister. the details of his agenda for the day have not been made public for security reasons. in fact, there are 1000 security officers being deployed here at the moment. president zelensky has tweeted that he will be meeting with

his counterpart and the italian prime minister. it's not the first time these two leaders have met. italy continue support for ukraine. after those two political meetings, president zelensky will be here right behind me instant peter bosz—mac square for a private meeting with pope francis. what bosz-mac square for a private meeting with pope francis. what is po -e meeting with pope francis. what is pepe francis _ meeting with pope francis. what is pope francis doing _ meeting with pope francis. what is pope francis doing to _ meeting with pope francis. what is pope francis doing to mediate - pope francis doing to mediate between the two countries because he's been talking about a mission to bring peace although this is not public it. what is the pope trying to do when it comes to having meetings between russia and ukraine? so pope francis has called for peace in ukraine many times. he says he prays the victims of the conflict every week and he has been invited

to peace as he is not a political leader but he can influence the sort of things and could have very important role when it comes to these things. sorry to interrupt you, we are now seeing president zelensky emerging from his car and he is creating italian leaders. he's here to meet the leadership there. we can see various leaders, some who have extended their hand of greeting. so that is president zelensky arriving in rome to have

those meetings with italy's president and the italian prime minister and the pope. sorry to interrupted there, ijust wanted to catch that moment. but please do continue as you are talking about the importance of the meetings he's going to have. the importance of the meetings he's going to have-— going to have. that's right. so the meetin: going to have. that's right. so the meeting he _ going to have. that's right. so the meeting he just — going to have. that's right. so the meeting he just mentioned - going to have. that's right. so the meeting he just mentioned is - going to have. that's right. so the. meeting he just mentioned is going meeting hejust mentioned is going to be a private meeting. president zelensky will be here to meet pope francis. you were mentioning a mission so what happened interestingly here a few weeks ago is that ukraine's prime minister visited the pope and asked for his help we patch to ukrainian children who'd been forcibly sent to russia. the pope said he would do everything he could to help and he says there is a mission under way when it comes to that but did not give any details for the time being. so there is a lot of speculation in italy about

when pope francis meets president zelensky that they will discuss this mission. indie zelensky that they will discuss this mission. ~ u, , zelensky that they will discuss this mission. ~ , , ., mission. we can see him standing there ready _ mission. we can see him standing there ready to _ mission. we can see him standing there ready to make _ mission. we can see him standing there ready to make the - mission. we can see him standing there ready to make the prime . there ready to make the prime minister and the president. they will be more calls for italian military support for anti—aircraft weapons. but let's listen to some of the ceremony that is going on. brass band plays

and there we have the two men now entering the building there. this is the scene in rome. president zelensky meeting with italian diplomats and he will also be meeting prime minister meloni. so while we have you here, something that has been discussed today is germany offering 3 billion of support. what's the likelihood of italy offering support of that

nature? , , ., , nature? president zelensky has repeatedly _ nature? president zelensky has repeatedly pleaded _ nature? president zelensky has repeatedly pleaded for - nature? president zelensky has repeatedly pleaded for more i nature? president zelensky has - repeatedly pleaded for more weapons from the west. we just saw the uk agreeing to send long—range missiles to ukraine. also other countries sending tanks to ukraine. italy has been sending weapons and money to support president zelensky. in a recent bbc interview he said that western sanctions to russia are working, especially to russia's defence operation but of course, as you mention, there is not a huge appetite here from political leaders. berlusconi, the leader of the centre—right has said given the opportunity, he would not want to meet president zelensky because he feels he is to blame for the war. so

today a very tough balancing act for the prime minister, meloni, who has been very vocal of his support of president zelensky.— been very vocal of his support of president zelensky. thank you very much, we president zelensky. thank you very much. we will _ president zelensky. thank you very much, we will leave _ president zelensky. thank you very much, we will leave it _ president zelensky. thank you very much, we will leave it there - president zelensky. thank you very much, we will leave it there for- much, we will leave it there for now. reporting from rome, president zelensky�*s first visit to italy since russian's invasion of ukraine. mr zelensky is expected to visit germany on sunday — and germany's defence minister has just announced a three billion dollar military aid package for ukraine, its biggest yet. the show of support comes as russia has carried out a new wave of air strikes on kyiv and other cities overnight. the authorities say the military intercepted all drones directed at the capital. but in the southern city of mykolaiv, three people were injured in attacks. and in the western city of khmelnytsky, critical infrastructure as well as residential and government buildings were hit.

the latest russian strikes come as ukrainian forces say they have made progress near the eastern city of bakhmut. 0ur correspondent in kyiv hugo bachega has the latest. russia carried out another wave of air strikes on ukrainian cities overnight. and at the ukrainian military says that 21 drones were fired by russia. one of those iranian made drones that russia has been using to attack towns and cities. one of the targets was the region in the west of the country where civilian infrastructure was hit. this is a transport hub

in the west of ukraine. the authorities say at least 11 people were injured in that 0ne city was also hit and at least three people were injured, the city of mykolaiv. ukraine says it has made some gains around the city of bakhmut, a key target for russian forces in the east of the country. yesterday, the russian defence ministry seemed to acknowledge that ukrainian forces have made some gains around bakhmut. and it also said that russian forces had abandoned some positions. there was some criticism from the head of the wagner group, yevgeny prigozhin, whose group has been leading the russian efforts to seize bakhmut. he said that what had happened near bakhmut was actually a rout. hugo bachega with the latest there from kyiv. because of the russian invasion, ukraine has been unable to host the eurovision song contest — despite winning the competition last year. the uk is holding the contest on ukraine's behalf. and we can go live now to maryam moshiri who is watching all the action for us in liverpool.

it's the anticipation building their? it has, and it has been a week. welcome to liverpool where after months of build up, the city is preparing to host the final of the eurovision song contest tonight. more than 160—million people across the continent are expected to watch. among one the favourites to win — sweden. eurovision legend loreen first won the competition in 2012. now she's back for a second shot at the title. 0ur media and arts correspondent david sillito has been soaking up the atmosphere ahead of tonight's long awaited grand finale. liverpool has become a carnival... ..of eurovision. everywhere you look, there's a reminder ofjust what has arrived. the city is awash with glitter. and, well, there's only one

word for it — rammed. just look at the queue for the eurovision village. and this isjust the buildup. the main event is going to be even busier. and among it all today was one very excited fan, josh. wow. wow, wow, wow. are we going in there, then? oh, my gosh! when tickets went on sale in march... oh, my god, ithink i'm going to cry! ..we were with him when he thought he had managed to get into the final. yeah, i got a vip package! we, actually — oh, my god, i'm going to have a heart attack. and then was crushed when it didn't go through. tickets for the grand final have now sold out. that's what says. he sighs what can you do? but perseverance pays off. something might happen, you never know. he and his mum finally did get tickets. that was a bad day for you, wasn't it? yes, i was devastated, but i'm now going to the final. twice, twice. twice?

yeah, i'm going to the vip in the morning, hospitality, to the preview, then i'm going to the live final in the evening. perseverance! this is what dreams are made of. the performers have also been out and about. here, finland. did you have to be convinced to wear this? no. no, no, no. i love it, first time when i see that, i went "give me that!" because when i put it on, i feel so superhero. so the fans are here in force, and the blue and yellow of ukraine is everywhere. and there will be a lot of attention on how the country is represented in tonight's show. eurovision's "no politics" rule means there'll be no video address from volodymyr zelensky, but rehearsals are being watched closely to see how far a contest staged in the uk can reflect ukraine.

david sillito, bbc news, liverpool. of course ukraine should have been hosting this contest — because it won last year. but instead it's liverpool who has that honour and the city has made sure to celebrate all things ukrainian ...and many ukrainians have travelled here from all over the country. joining me now is 0lha and her daughter, solomiia. they arrived in uk from ukraine a year ago after a missile struck near their home in kyiv. they have travelled to liverpool to see the eurovision final rehearsal later today. . .. thank you for this possibility to share our emotion. we thank you for this possibility to share our emotion.— thank you for this possibility to share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite _ share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite a _ share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite a rural— share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite a rural place - share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite a rural place so - share our emotion. we now stay in wales in quite a rural place so it'sl wales in quite a rural place so it's a big _ wales in quite a rural place so it's a big contrast to being liverpool. very— a big contrast to being liverpool. very excited. we will attend the grand _ very excited. we will attend the grand festival preview so we are waiting — grand festival preview so we are waiting. we are eager to see so thank_

waiting. we are eager to see so thank you — waiting. we are eager to see so thank you for that. what i would say, _ thank you for that. what i would say, when — thank you for that. what i would say, when we got off the train and saw all— say, when we got off the train and saw all the — say, when we got off the train and saw all the ukrainian colours, flags, — saw all the ukrainian colours, flags, we _ saw all the ukrainian colours, flags, we feel so welcome. it made us feel— flags, we feel so welcome. it made us feel like — flags, we feel so welcome. it made us feel like we were home. like a piece _ us feel like we were home. like a piece of— us feel like we were home. like a piece of home so thank you for that. 0ther— piece of home so thank you for that. other reclaim into said the same. 0ther reclaim into said the same. yes, _ 0ther reclaim into said the same. yes. very— 0ther reclaim into said the same. yes, very warm feeling. other reclaim into said the same. yes, very warm feeling.— other reclaim into said the same. yes, very warm feeling. what are you lookin: yes, very warm feeling. what are you looking forward _ yes, very warm feeling. what are you looking forward to _ yes, very warm feeling. what are you looking forward to eurovision? - yes, very warm feeling. what are you looking forward to eurovision? i'm . looking forward to eurovision? i'm supporting ukraine. 0f looking forward to eurovision? i'm supporting ukraine. of course you do. do you think going to win tonight? yes. tell us about your journey to the uk because we said that a missile struck near your home. how important was it for you to make thatjourney one year ago? it was a very difficult decision. but it was for my children, my older and my younger i'm now at home. my second family, my second family is

my british family, so it was a really difficult decision. my husband is a defender in the army so he said better if i moved, but because of the children, because of the possibility for them to carry on their education, first of all, i decided to do this step. but thank you for my british family, my hosts. we feel very comfortable and we've adjusted. so it's about one year, so... ., ., .., , so... you are living in wales. obviously — so... you are living in wales. obviously you _ so... you are living in wales. obviously you have _ so... you are living in wales. obviously you have learned l so... you are living in wales. - obviously you have learned english. you speak amazing english. you are learning welsh? how does it feel to adjust to year five and a british school? i adjust to year five and a british school? . . adjust to year five and a british school? , ., ., ., . ,

school? i 'ust want to learn welsh so ou school? i just want to learn welsh so you can — school? i just want to learn welsh so you can make _ school? i just want to learn welsh so you can make friends? - school? i just want to learn welsh so you can make friends? they i school? i just want to learn welsh | so you can make friends? they are very kind- — so you can make friends? they are very kind- here — so you can make friends? they are very kind. here is— so you can make friends? they are very kind. here is your _ so you can make friends? they are very kind. here is your best - so you can make friends? they arei very kind. here is your best friend. lc. who will you be watching this evening? i lc. who will you be watching this evenin: ? . , . ., evening? i want my child to en'oy this because fl evening? i want my child to en'oy this because it i evening? i want my child to en'oy this because it willi evening? i want my child to en'oy this because it will be i evening? i want my child to en'oy this because it will be a i evening? i want my child to en'oy this because it will be a good h this because it will be a good memory, a remarkable event. i hope we will keep this memory all our lives. . ~' , ., we will keep this memory all our lives. . ,, , ., ., ., lives. thank you for “oining me, both. lots * lives. thank you for “oining me, both. lots to h lives. thank you forjoining me, both. lots to celebrate - lives. thank you forjoining me, both. lots to celebrate today i lives. thank you forjoining me, | both. lots to celebrate today for lives. thank you forjoining me, - both. lots to celebrate today for so many people but not everyone is finding it easy to get to where the party is. rain strikes continue across the country and lets find out how they are affecting passengers across the country, trying to get to eurovision and everywhere else in the uk. we willjoin and use correspondence in euston station.

we're joined from euston station in london by our news correspondent yetunde yusuf. there are some trains running today up there are some trains running today up to liverpool for those trying to get to the final but rail countries are saying they will be little or no services running today. 1a train companies are affected so there are some people are being advised to check their journeys some people are being advised to check theirjourneys before they travel. some people have had to take coaches, for example. some people might be wondering why today of all days, wife on the day of the eurovision song contest final, well, the transport secretary, mark harper says it's cynically targeting the final taking place tonight but mick lynch says otherwise. they've said they have not targeted any specific activities people get up to and

there's the national league play—off final at wembley. they said today was the last saturday they could strike because of the six—month mandate. i'm asking people on the picket line why they are striking today and it's all about pay and conditions. there's been a 5% pay offer made to the people here today and that would be backdated to 2022 but they say it will simply not be viable because they were conditions attached onto it which meant having to call the strikes often they did not want to. as you know next week we could hear about more strikes being announced so this could continue on for some time. i don't know if you _ continue on for some time. i don't know if you spoken _ continue on for some time. i don't know if you spoken to _ continue on for some time. i don't know if you spoken to any - continue on for some time. i don't . know if you spoken to any passengers but yesterday we caught up with a couple who had taken a plane from london to dublin and then another

line from dublin to liverpooljust to get to eurovision. are you hearing of any stories about people trying to make a desperate attempt to get to liverpool without using the train? i to get to liverpool without using the train? . , ., , ., ., the train? i mean people have had incredibly difficult _ the train? i mean people have had incredibly difficult journeys. - incredibly difficult journeys. people here today seem to be getting around fine at the moment but we have heard stories of people finding it incredibly difficult, having to get coaches but people are more prepared today because i don't want to miss the final tonight.— to miss the final tonight. thank you ve much to miss the final tonight. thank you very much indeed _ to miss the final tonight. thank you very much indeed for— to miss the final tonight. thank you very much indeed for that _ to miss the final tonight. thank you very much indeed for that update i very much indeed for that update from euston station. throughout lovely sunny liverpool, we will bring you all the latest this evening. we will look forward to hearing more from you. let's go now to turkey.

the presidential candidates in turkey are gearing up for their last day of campaigning ahead of sunday's crucial election. president recep tayyip erdogan will hold a rally in istanbul, where he built his popular support as mayor more than 20 years ago. in the evening, he is expected to pray at the hagia sophia which he controversially converted into a mosque to please religious conservatives. his secular challenger, kemal kilicdaroglu, will also be touring istanbul with the current mayor. the 7a—year—old, has been appealing to the young — promising to restore democracy and improve relations with the west. now it's time for a look at today's sport with mike. hello from the bbc sport centre. after 11 years in the premier league, southampton' stay could come to an end later, when they could be officially releagted. they have to win all three of their remaining games to have any chance of escaping the drop, starting at home against fulham later. even if they do take three points, they could still go down if other results go against them. southampton haven't won

in ten league matches. for us, it's ourjob and our privilege to fight until the very last minute. and that's what we are going to do it. we know it's very close there, but we still have our chances. it's not mathematically there, so we are going to go for it. and again, it's ourjob and our privilege to be in this position, playing for southampton and working in the premier league. and then we are going to be there until the very last second. another team in peril, and tipped to drop out of the premier league, are leeds united. they welcome third placed, newcastle united. now last week manager sam allardyce was criticised for saying, he's as good, when it comes to coaching, as a pep guardiola orjurgen klopp, but he's now revealed that, line was all part of a cunning plan. all those who criticize me about that light sounded a bit thick, didn't they, when all i was doing was diversifying off the players onto myself. there was no pressure on the players

because i took it all. i took all the stick and all the, "ooh, look at him. listen to him." but there we go. there's none of that this week. it's purely and simply focusing on newcastle. i have said to the players when we come off the field on saturday, we can't afford to lose. we must get something. tottenham go to aston villa later, still searching for their next permanent manager. and the bbc understands, it will not be, hulian nagels—mann. it will not be, hulian nagelsmann. the former bayern munich manager, had been among the bookies' favourites to succeed antonio conte, as the next spurs boss, but no talks have taken place and spurs are not considering him for the role. in basketball, an inspired lebronjames, sent the la lakers into the western conference finals, and eliminated last year's n.b.a winners, the golden state warriors. the 38—year—old, james, scored 30 points as the lakers won 122—101, in los angeles to clinch the best—of—seven series 4—2. the lakers, who finished seventh

in the regular season, will play top seeds the denver nuggets in the series, to decide who plays in the nba finals. elsewhere, the miami heat beat the new york knicks to reach the eastern conference finals. a record breaking sale is on the cards, in the nfl. the washington commanders co—owner dan snyder, has agreed to sell the nfl franchise, to a group headed up, to a group headed up by american investor josh harris in a record deal. it's reported to be worth about 6 billion dollars making it the world's most expensive, sports team purchase. and that's all the sport for now. let's remind you of our top story. president zelensky is meeting italian political leaders and has an audience with the pipe in rome. the

prime minister, giorgio meloni, has been one of ukraine's most vocal backers and resident zelensky will be looking for support from italy. —— president zelensky. stay with us here on bbc news. hello. thanks for joining hello. thanks forjoining me. time to see what's happening on the weather front over the next ten days or so. weather front over the next ten days orso. in weather front over the next ten days or so. in the short term, it's looking promising for many of us. saturday especially is going to be a nice day with warm sunshine. come sunday, rain clouds on the horizon but let's concentrate on saturday. you can see large area of high pressure. it won't last long. there's a cold front approaching. sunshine right from the word go

across many western areas. a little bit of a nip in the air. first thing on saturday it's cloudy, and will take time for that son to break through. some north sea coasts may be cloudy through the course of the afternoon. it will be cooler. 1a celsius. widely in the high teens. glasgow, belfast and london too. the sun is very strong this time of the year. the uv index will be officially higher in many parts of the country. on that cold front, saturday night into sunday, the high pressure weakens and allows that cold fronts to gently waft in off the atlantic. it's not going to be roaring through but it will bring in a breeze to the north—west of the uk. rain to the north, northern

ireland, the west fringes of wales. cooler yellows and lime greens, temperatures struggling in some areas in the north and west. it could be 22 celsius in london on sunday. another area of high pressure builds behind this cold front, moving across the country in the weekend and behind it we see fresher air riding around this area of high pressure. cooler airfrom the north atlantic, slipping over the north atlantic, slipping over the uk, temperatures will drop, if you look at these wind arrows pointing in from the north, a few showers and close to a weather front here, it's not going to feel particularly pleasant on the north sea coast and east anglia. disappointing temperatures for this time of year, 12—15 c. not really where we'd like to be in may. tuesday's when a map, some chances

of showers but generally speaking a large area of high pressure will just be west of ireland, but the wind direction coming in from the north so it's a relatively cool source. again, temperatures struggling, some places seeing no temperatures higher than eight celsius. high pressure with us on wednesday which means a slightly cooler conditions but generally dry weather. let's have a look at the outlook. let's see what the icons have to say. the next weekend. it looks like temperatures will recover somewhat and overall, you can see generally we are talking about mostly dry weather. goodbye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: ukraine's president zelensky is visiting rome — where he'll have an audience with the pope and meet italian political leaders. the prime minister, giorgia meloni has been one of kyiv�*s more vocal backers. turkey's election candidates are taking part in the last few hours of campaigning, before the country goes to the polls. president erdogan is fighting for his political survival against opponents promising what they're calling �*a return to democracy.�* rail passengers across england are facing further disruption as members of the rmt union walk out on strike. the latest indutrial acton is part of a long—running dispute about pay and conditions. the excitement is building

in liverpool as last minute preparations are made for the eurovision song contest final. the uk's entry, will be the last of the twenty six acts to perform.