welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines. early results are expected shortly in turkey's presidential election — could the country be heading for a run—off vote? italy, germany, now france — president zelensky visits emmanuel macron, to discuss further military support for ukraine. to thailand — where the military—backed government is set to lose to pro—democracy parties in the country's national elections. reports that at least five people have died in myanmar — as a powerful cyclone crashes into the country.

it's six in the morning in singapore, and one in the morning in turkey — where voting has closed in one of the most critical elections. the country is deciding whether president erdohan remains in power after 20 years. it is expected to be a close race between him and an opposition leader kemal k l cdaroglu. he is a former civil servant who heads an alliance of six opposition parties, both secular and islamist. he promised to scrap many of the powers acquired by mr erdogan and return turkey to a parliamentary system. and also called for better relations with the west — including renewal of turkey's bid for membership of the eu. the current leader recep tayyip erdogan first came to power as prime minister in 2003 and became president in 2014. under him turkey enjoyed strong economic growth, but it's been hit by high inflation, and the recent earthquakes in which tens of thousands died.

he's also become increasingly authoritarian with more powers in the hands of the president, and tighter restrictions on free speech. both candidates have dismissed the other side's claims to be in the lead. these are live pictures of opposition supporters in ankara waiting outside the party's headquarters. we can see flags, k l cdaroglu gave a speech recently and said — we are here until every last vote is counted. and what was a very short speech he said the the governing ak party was blocking the system by filing objections to the results where the opposition has paid a higher number of votes. let's show you what the

scene is like at the governing ak headquarters. as you can see supporters of recep tayyip erdo an also in a celebratory mood. you can see flax being waved there there is a sense of course that both the allies of the president and those of the opposition unity candidate are both contesting this as a victory for themselves, both contesting this as a victory forthemselves, but both contesting this as a victory for themselves, but the result, i must emphasise, is not yet clear. we will be reporting all throughout the day on this on bbc news but first... our senior international correspondent, orla guerin, has sent this report. people talk excitedly a tense moment in a tight election. here in ankara, voters spotted two people in one polling booth. the police were called in. the ballot box matters in turkey, and the opposition are on the lookout for fraud.

this is a pivotal vote which could mean the end of the erdogan era. president erdogan�*s supporters insist he is going nowhere. this man tells us he will still be president tomorrow because he always wins elections, and he will keep developing turkey. the authoritarian leader voted in istanbul, looking sombre, with election officials standing to attention. he said he is praying for turkish democracy. the president's smiling, secular rival, kemal kilicdaroglu, says democracy would be a lot better off without him. applause and cheering well, kemal kilicdaroglu has emerged here now having cast his vote. everyone is trying to get a picture. he's the focus of a lot of attention

here today, a lot of hopes, he's promising to bring a new beginning, to bring spring to turkey. and waiting for him patiently, for hours, three generations of one family who hope today will change everything. they've brought baby mira along. outside her home for the first time ever. "i don't want to be afraid when i speak," says her aunt, sanem. "now i'm giving you an interview and i'm scared. i simply want to live without fear. we have been silent for so long." but president erdogan has been pulling out all the stops to survive, invoking religion, as he often does. last night he prayed for his political life

in istanbul's iconic ayasofya, which he reconverted to a mosque. and a huge crowd prayed with him. win or lose, for president erdogan, some have fears about what may come next. we are concerned a little bit what may happen both ways. if he's elected, we don't see a good future for the country. and if he's not, things may get messier, so wejust... we will wait and see what happens. be don't want mess, we want to be happy with our children and we want to live happily in this country, we love our country. exactly. for now, the count continues with claim and counterclaim about who is ahead. at the president's headquarters, the party is already getting started. the opposition say to wait for the final result. there is a long night ahead.

orla guerin, bbc news, ankara. lets cross live to our middle east correspondent, anna foster, who joins us from the turkish city of adana. great to get you on the programme. in the first instance was the latest you can this point? you in the first instance was the latest you can this point?— you can this point? you heard her sa in: you can this point? you heard her saying they _ you can this point? you heard her saying they are — you can this point? you heard her saying they are that _ you can this point? you heard her saying they are that there - you can this point? you heard her saying they are that there is - you can this point? you heard her saying they are that there is a - saying they are that there is a claim and counterclaim in that continues. both sides are really disputing the figures that are coming out at this stage. as with any election in any country around the world, counting is a slow process. you mentioned at the beginning, it is after 1am here in turkey. the polls closed at 5pm yesterday and counselling has been happening ever since. as the votes slowly roll in they tend in the first instance to favour the ak party. erdogan's party because those of the areas tend to be counted

first we normally expect to see president erdogan take a lead and that those numbers start to even out. the problem is that if neither of those two men, there are three in the running of course, but if neither of those two main challengers can get over 50% of the vote, 50% plus one would do, but if they cannot get as many as that there will be no presidential resolution in the next few hours. this will go to a runoff in two weeks' time. but in the meantime, there are complaints about recounts in certain areas, kemal k l cdaroglu made a statement a short time ago saying that, in some areas ballot boxes had been counted, recounted ii boxes had been counted, recounted 11 times already. this will not be, i don't think, a peaceful into simple ending to this process. both sides are desperate for a victory in both sides at the moment are very unsure, very suspicious of the tactics of the other side are using. just in that speech _ the other side are using. just in that speech that _ the other side are using. just in that speech that you're - the other side are using. just in

that speech that you're talking l that speech that you're talking about, from kemal k l cdaroglu, he talked about the fact that there should not be a blocking of the will of the nation, just quoting from what he said, let the results come in and everyone note the result. is it the sense that you are getting from people that you are talking to as well? on both sides and what are some of the other main concerns for turkish voters?— some of the other main concerns for turkish voters? people are desperate for results- i — turkish voters? people are desperate for results. i suppose _ turkish voters? people are desperate for results. i suppose the _ turkish voters? people are desperate for results. i suppose the way - turkish voters? people are desperate for results. i suppose the way that. for results. i suppose the way that things work here, make it very difficult to tell what is going on. it is not like certain countries around the world for example where you may see exit polls, you make it a sense of what the result might be almost immediately. the counting happens in small amounts and then these figures, they are released in a small and sometimes secretive way to the different main agencies who then produce different sets of figures so it makes it very difficult for people to become frustrated in misunderstanding, feeling like they do not have a

clear picture at the stage on what the result is looking like. it means that we do need to wait. and because it is so tight as well, we are looking realistically at for both kemal k l cdaroglu and for recep tayyip erdo an, votes in the high 40%. it tayyip erdo an, votes in the high a0%. it could be a5—49% tayyip erdo an, votes in the high 40%. it could be 45-49% it tayyip erdo an, votes in the high a0%. it could be a5—49% it could be as close as that but of course if neither gets above the line that is simply not enough but it's worth saying as well, this idea of a runoff. this has not happened before. they would say it would happen in two weeks' time on the 28th of may but if these complaints continue, but these requests for recounts continue, we have been talking this evening, speaking to people here in adana in some say, if thatis people here in adana in some say, if that is happening could you really have a recount, a runoff into week time, that is what the losses but that happens we are really into uncharted waters? —— what the law says. i uncharted waters? -- what the law sa s. ~ ., , ., , uncharted waters? -- what the law sas. «a, , says. i know you will be watching every twist _

says. i know you will be watching every twist and — says. i know you will be watching every twist and turn _ says. i know you will be watching every twist and turn for- says. i know you will be watching every twist and turn for us. - says. i know you will be watching every twist and turn for us. our l every twist and turn for us. our middle east correspondent on that story for us. results of the turkish election could be crucial for the war in ukraine. while president erdogan is a mediator between moscow and kyiv — the new leader could take a different stance on the war. speaking of support — ukraine's president, volodymyr zelensky paid a visit to france tonight. he is at the elysee palace with his french counterpart, emmanuel macron at the moment. discussing french military and humanitatian aid for ukraine. it's mr zelensky�*s third visit to a major european power this weekend. he was in germany earlier, and on saturday he was in rome meeting italian leaders. our paris correspondent, hugh schofield watched president zelensky arrive. he told us that they aren't expecting a big announcement on more military aid from france after the talks. we have not been led to suspect that will happen in any major way. france is giving plenty, at least it is certainly very proud it is now a significant contributor to the ukrainian arsenal, with its caesar mobile artillery

unit and light tanks and some air defence. it may well be there was more to come. basically the briefings before this were not to make a big announcement, the centrepiece of the meeting, that was not the point, it was much more coordination in advance of the counteroffensive which everyone says is coming and ahead of other big meetings which will be taking place in the coming weeks, the g7 coming up, nato and so on. that is how we have been briefed in paris. things are fine now and have been for a while. this is not that recent but a year ago they were not set fair. i think we can only say that there were tensions, not that president macron in any way sided with russia but there were perceptions that he was less than clear in his support for ukraine, and there was a sort of ambivalence about the french position,

linked, everyone said back then, to historical, emotional ties with russia, and a need to distance france from the automatic position of the west led by the united states. that was the argument back then which people attributed to macron's decision to keep open the line of communication with putin through the initial part of the war. but that stage ended and because the situation now has become much clearer now in the sense that the west as a whole regards putin as being quite unequivocally the aggressor in all this and ukraine unequivocally as the victim and the country that needs to be salvaged and rescued and given a clear independent future, the picture and the lines are clear and france and ukraine are back as fully fledged friends.

initial results from thailand's general election show a surge of support for the reformist new party move forward. current projections put move forward's seat total very close to the frontrunner pheu thai. between them the two reformist parties are likely to have a substantial majority, making it all but certain that incumbent prime minister prayut chan—ocha will not have another term in office. but even if they win, it's unclear the military will allow them to form the next government. live now to bangkok where we can hear more on this byjoining tossapol chaisamritpol from the bbc thai service. thank you forjoining us. give us a sense of where the figure stand right now. what is your assessment of the mood in the country at the moment? it of the mood in the country at the moment? ., , ., , of the mood in the country at the moment? ., . , , , , .,, moment? it was a big surprise last niuht. and

moment? it was a big surprise last night- and now— moment? it was a big surprise last night. and now we _ moment? it was a big surprise last night. and now we have _ moment? it was a big surprise last night. and now we have seen - moment? it was a big surprise last l night. and now we have seen 90% of the vote is already counted but we had to wait until the next four days until the approved vote. but from the look of it now move forward party is a big force because now they have become number one that has they have become number one that has the right for the government, winning against pheu thai party. now move forward has the majority, about 151 which is a lot. move forward was expected to earn less than 100 but this is a big surprise. just expected to earn less than 100 but this is a big surprise.— this is a big surprise. just to “ump in there. when i

this is a big surprise. just to “ump in there. when you i this is a big surprise. just to “ump in there. when you talkfi this is a big surprise. just to “ump in there. when you talk to h this is a big surprise. just to jump in there. when you talk to type i in there. when you talk to type voters what is the appeal behind move forward? why has been surprisingly surprisingly successful as we have seen today —— . the majority of people now want . the ma'ority of people now want chan . e. . the majority of people now want change- move _ . the majority of people now want change. move forward _ . the majority of people now want change. move forward party - . the majority of people now want change. move forward party has l change. move forward party has promised change for the better. they will try to adjust the laws, they promised that the people coming here promised that the people coming here promise and believe that move forward is a party that will send thailand in a more progressive way because we have been stuck with a conservative side for the past several decades now so now they are pinning their hopes on move forward party. proper list but they say that

the move forward party will do something right. because they have been doing something very well in opposition in the past four years. thank you so much forjoining us on the programme with your thoughts and analysis. i am nowjoined by pongkwan sawasdipakdi from the centre for strategic & international studies in los angeles who can give us some more reaction. i don't know how much you were able to hear if my colleague from bbc thai service butjust in the first instance how surprised if you been from the outcome of the vote? just the same as _ from the outcome of the vote? jut the same as everyone else. i was pretty surprised by the result because i obviously, following the polls and i definitely did not think that the move forward party would surpass the votes for pheu thai. uh? surpass the votes for pheu thai. why did ou surpass the votes for pheu thai. why did you think— surpass the votes for pheu thai. why did you think that? from what we have heard from our reporters in

teams on the ground, the move forward party seems to have apparently resent a new way forward and that has been the appealing factor for them amongst pheu thai voters. —— thai voters. factor for them amongst pheu thai voters. -- thai voters.— voters. -- thai voters. becausel think in the _ voters. -- thai voters. becausel think in the first _ voters. -- thai voters. becausel think in the first few— voters. -- thai voters. because i think in the first few rounds - voters. -- thai voters. because i think in the first few rounds it. voters. -- thai voters. because i l think in the first few rounds it was clear that pheu thai was leading for a bit and we know something about thailand is that there is also there is the rural and city divide in the light of the policy and pheu thai have been successively supporting the economy of the rural area so it was not clear at the beginning how much the poll actually reflected the vote outside the city. when actually the results came out i was a bit surprised, but hearing a lot from people around me and social media it is clear that the move forward party is clear that the move forward party is still as a hope for them because they are really clear on many points including reforms that you have heard about that, the nonmilitary

and on the social welfare of people in thailand's advocate represents that hope. ijust did not really expect it to perform this well. although i really expected them to get plurality butjust not this much. jt get plurality but 'ust not this much. , ., , much. it is remarkable when democracy — much. it is remarkable when democracy has _ much. it is remarkable when democracy has its _ much. it is remarkable when democracy has its say. - much. it is remarkable when democracy has its say. but l much. it is remarkable when | democracy has its say. but in much. it is remarkable when - democracy has its say. but in terms if what the next steps are, because evenif if what the next steps are, because even if we do get a clear outright outcome in this where the next steps to perform a government and how easy will that be? jt to perform a government and how easy will that be? , ., will that be? it definitely will not be easy and _ will that be? it definitely will not be easy and at — will that be? it definitely will not be easy and at least _ will that be? it definitely will not be easy and at least the - will that be? it definitely will not be easy and at least the official i be easy and at least the official resorts, i don't know how long it will take the election committee to come out but it will definitely take them will the that is the deadline than they have to come up with the official resorts. so it tweaked a little bit until we get the official results on who gets how many votes and how many seats in the parliament. so that is one thing. just leaving things about the

election commission behind, there are several scenarios that could happen following the election. so the first scenario is probably from something that we all respect or we all expected to happen, or i would like to see it happen is that we have the government led by the move forward partyjoined with the pheu thai party and other smaller parties on the pro—democracy side and this would expect the centre to respect the people of the country so i don't know how much that would happen. the scenario to or second scenario that we might have as we have a minority government meaning the current government meaning the current government parties forming a coalition and then now they get the vote from the 250 centres which were appointed by the military. so we will have a minority quorum. so sorry that i am afraid we do have to interrupt because we are running out

of time for this segment. thank you so much forjoining us on the programme. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. on the busy a1 in north yorkshire in march this year, police cameras recorded jason ryder driving in poor conditions at speeds of 140 mph. the police pursuit which began in harrowgate lasted 17 minutes and ended near gately off the a1. when police deployed a stinger device to stop the speeding car. vehicle stung, vehicle stung! york crown court heard how jason ryder has york crown court heard howjason ryder had committed the offence on the very same day he had been disqualified from driving. he appeared before harrogate magistrates in connection with a previous driving offence but, instead of sending his licence, he left court and got

straight into his car. ryder was sentenced to ten months in prison, again disqualified from driving for 22 months. the judge described his driving as appalling, and said it was extraordinary that nobody was killed. you're live with bbc news. one of the strongest storms to hit the bay of bengal in recent years — cyclone mocha — has inundated parts of myanmar, cutting communications and destroying buildings. at least five people are reported to have been killed in the country and the city of sittwe is said to be deep in water, with winds of 200 kilometres per hour causing chaos. disaster officials in bangladesh said there'd been no major damage. around a million rohinga refugees are living in flimsy camps around the city of cox's bazar — 1,300 of those shelters have been damaged. rajini vaidyanathan is in cox's bazar — and sent this report. cyclone mocha arrived with great force.

winds gusting at high speeds. it hit the bangladesh—myanmar coastline. as the cyclone intensified, so did the panic. here in southeast bangladesh, hundreds of thousands left their homes in coastal areas for shelter. some even brought their livestock. janat carried her two—month—old baby from their home on the banks of a river. every classroom in this school is absolutely packed with people who've left their homes, seeking shelter from the cyclone. there are many mothers with babies, there's young children, the elderly and the sick. almost everyone here is from a low—lying coastal area in fishing communities, and they're terrified about whether their homes will still be standing once the cyclone passes.

for now, it's about finding a space to settle here. we metjanat again as she searched for a place to sit with her baby, imran. for her, this cyclone is part of an endless cycle. translation: last year, _ another cyclone destroyed my house. we repaired it, but now i feel it is damaged again. how can i live if this keeps happening? i can't afford to rebuild it. we are very poor. nature was also punishing the poor in the world's largest refugee camp nearby. hundreds of bamboo shelters damaged by the storm. rohingya refugees who'd fled persecution in myanmar more than five years ago already live in miserable conditions. this cyclone just made things worse. as families return from the shelter, relief that no—one was

killed in the storm here. evacuations are credited for saving lives as the extreme weather continues to disrupt them. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, cox's bazar, bangladesh. the bafta television awards have been taking place in london. it's british tv�*s biggest night of the year — recognising the best shows of last year. the most memorable moment award was given to paddington bear having tea with the late queen elizabrth during the platinum jubilee: party at the palace celebrations on the bbc. the psychological adventure show the traitors won the reality and constructed factual award. it's presenter claudia winkleman also picked up an award. kate winslet won the leading actress award for her role in i am ruth. it chronicles the life of a mother and daughter dealing with a tense time in their life. the show also won best single drama. let's go back to

the live pictures now on the streets of turkey. scenes where supporters on both sides are out in celebration. lots more for you on the bbc. hello. the weather over the weekend varied quite a bit from day to day, sunnier moment, cloudier moments, but we still managed to reach 22 celsius in kew gardens, making it the warm spot. how about monday? sunny spells in the forecast, scattered showers, too, but we're focusing on the dry weather, and indeed, it will be a mostly dry day for many of us. now, on the satellite picture, there is a line of cloud across the uk, that is a weather front, it's been bringing rain. and early in the morning, it is going to be raining across east anglia, the south east and central southern england as this weather front gradually moves towards the east. but behind it, a large area of high pressure is building in, and that means settled weather for many of us. so here's the forecast through the early hours.

you can see where the cloud and the rain is. but even once the weather front clears away, still a few showers behind it. it will be on the nippy side across some parts of the country. temperatures in glasgow and edinburgh around 4 celsius, but in the southeast, around ten celsius. so early in the morning, there will be some cloud and rain in the southeast. eventually that weather front clears away, and then it's a case of sunny spells and scattered showers maybe in northern ireland, scotland, northern england and further east as well. the temperatures pretty disappointing for this time in may, typically around about 13—14 celsius. and it will actually be quite chilly along the north sea coast, where we'll have a keen breeze out of the north north—west. high pressure very close by on tuesday. in fact, light winds expected across many western areas. it'll feel a little bit warmer. further north, though, showers are expected across scotland, northern england, certainly into yorkshire. temperatures recovering somewhat, especially where the winds are lighter out towards the west,

perhaps as high as 17 celsius in belfast and also in cardiff. and then that high pressure is pretty much on top of us. midweek, we've light winds, but i think variable amounts of cloud. now, if we look at the air mass map, and that's the temperature of the atmosphere, you can see these yellow colours and actually a drift of warmer weather from the south. so, yes, temperatures will recover a little bit as we head towards the end of the week. in fact, that's reflected in the forecast here until friday. you can see we're sort of generally in the high teens towards the end of the week. and from the weather icons, you can gather it is going to be a mostly dry week as well. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, as newsday continues straight after hardtalk. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. in the glossy tourist brochures, the seychelles, an archipelago of islands far off the coast of east africa, is portrayed as a little piece of paradise. but dig deeper and you find a very different reality — an island nation threatened by climate change, a population with the worst heroin addiction rate in the world and a political culture tainted by allegations of corruption.

well, my guest is seychelles' president, wavel ramkalawan.