thank you very much, our correspondent, nick beake - to, today.e in paris, has been with me all evening. you were listening to emmanuel macron's victory speech, as we all were, what did you make of it the? i think that is interesting that he would want to appeal to all french people from the beginning, and making sure that people do not be doing marine le pen's name, he was adamant that she they should not do that and again he's trying to present himself as the president of france, the ecological nation, which is something he did not deliver during his first term, and he is trying to act as someone who might be in favour ofjustice, but let's not forget that he proposed this measure for people who are receiving an amount of money every month, that they should also provide some work which is the first time that this is proposed, and he has drawn on the right to propose this measure and finally what i find interesting, he wants to gather all energies of france in order to move forward, but he was devising himself during his term and i will take one e

nick beake, bbc news, paris.inistry of defence says it's uncovered more evidence that russian forces have adopted a deliberate strategy of targeting civilians in ukraine. it says there's clear evidence of mass graves and the fatal use of hostages as human shields. moscow denies the claims. ukraine has welcomed the uk's offer of extra weapons. as the russians regroup ahead of an expected attack on the east of the country — thousands continue to flee the disputed donbas region —many making their way to lviv from where danjohnson sent this report. elena has made it to safety but she isn't at rest. she left home in the east of ukraine two days ago, but not for the first time. the people of the donbas region have lived with conflict for years now. translation: in 2014 we had the first war and we were - forced to leave our home. it is really scary when you run under fire so i already knew what it was like eight years ago. she took a train with her daughter on friday and they onlyjust missed the rocket attack on kramato

our europe correspondent nick beake reports from paris.e of the planet was the theme of this big climate rally in paris, but it's the temperature of the french public that's being taken this weekend, and many want something new. this election is absolutely key for our future. this is the motto of this march, and it's key for socialjustice, environmentaljustice. there's a feeling president macron spent too much time on the kremlin than the campaign trail. talking more to vladimir putin and not listening to the french people. all the while, the far right candidate marine le pen, has been gaining ground in this, her third presidential race, honing a softer image this time. but immigration and security are still at the heart of her agenda. retired secretary janine tells us le pen is now ready for the highest office. and if you shut your eyes fora moment, can you imagine marine le pen in the elysee palace as your president? why not? i think she would be not so bad. not so bad as macron. with the very latest polls suggesting more support for mar

from paris, nick beake reports.resident macron has only just turned up to this selection. he's been spending much of his time on the war in ukraine, many french say he's been missing in action at home. the far right candidate marie le pen has been gaining ground in this, her third presidential race, honing a softer image this time. retired secretary janine tells us le pen is now ready for the highest office. i think she would be not so bad. not so bad as macron. many people coming here to vote today will have seen the very latest polls suggesting le pen is onlyjust behind macron now. and so more people asking the question whether france is on the verge of own brexit moment, or trump moment, in other words a political earthquake, something which has huge repercussions, not just in this country but across europe and beyond. but le pen appears less in cosmopolitan paris and emmanuel macron remains the frontrunner in the national polls. he tells us he is voting for macron because he has proved himself on the world stage

thank you so much, nick beake, l with this defeat. very interesting.olitical analyst here, and nacira guenif, professor of sociology and anthropology at the university paris 8, vincennes—saint—denis. we have just had the exit polls there, you had some interesting details about how many votes we think they're in the pan has gained a last time. it think they're in the pan has gained a last time-— a last time. it seems these are estimates. _ a last time. it seems these are estimates, we _ a last time. it seems these are estimates, we will— a last time. it seems these are estimates, we will have - a last time. it seems these are estimates, we will have the i a last time. it seems these are - estimates, we will have the results as they come in, but it seems she added 3 million votes to her name. that is why, in her sense, she can say this is a big victory. first of all, in 2017, she was written off. her dismal performance at the debate had put her somewhere in the limbo of politics. she is back, she added three millions to her name, it seems now that a lot

nick beake, bbc news, at nato headquarters.ussian soldier. jeremy bowen is with me. what more do we know about this? well, it is a really horrible thing to watch because there are a number of soldiers on the ground and they have been identified as russians and there is one who is moving slightly and somebody comes up and puts a few more bullets into him and then he does not move any more, there's a lot of blood. and they are quite triumphalist about it as well, celebrating, very about it. under the laws of war, you know, a much maligned body of work but the only way we have ofjudging these things, when a soldier is either captured or wounded, they become effectively a noncombatant and they have the same status as civilians. so if it is what it seems to be, it is clearly grounds for being a war crime. the question then is what does the ukrainian government do about it. do they try to sweep it under the carpet or do they go after the perpetrators? that is the test really of a government in the circumstances because sadly, in ever

our europe correspondent nick beake has the latest on the presidential run—off from paris.ast his ballot this morning, hoping to become the first french president to be re—elected in 20 years. but many voters believe he has failed to deliver on big promises during his first term. marine le pen also wants to make history by becoming the first french woman to be president. she has tried to present a softer image, but is accused of holding onto racist policies, including banning muslim women from wearing a headscarf in public. the french aren't exactly thrilled with what is on offer this election. the frustration we found at this market in paris tells a similar story across the country. just listen to patrik, a retired fireman and joel, an office worker. they will not be voting for anyone. translation: | am noti going to vote for marine because i hate the far right. but macron is not that different. he is president of the rich — arrogant, contemptuous. translation: i do not hate marine, she has got better, she's _ calmer, more mature. her speech is more poised. but i do not ag

i asked nick beake, the bbc�*s europe correspondent, who's been covering the first round and is now backe brexit vote, then we saw the election of donald trump, and people are wondering whether the french are going to do something very similar, something that upsets everything that's come before. and that's because a le pen presidency wouldn't just change the face of france, in some ways, bringing in her own domestic policies, but it would change france's place, notjust in the european union, but among the international community. and although she's softened some aspects of her appeal to the french people, for example, she no longer says that france should come out of the single currency, the euro, she basically, it would seem, wants to dismantle the european union from within. so she won't say out loud, "france would be pulling out of the eu on day one of my presidency," but she's talking about french law being more important than european law. she's talking about stopping payments going to brussels. you simply can't do that. so i think there would be a lot of nervousness if she got in

if my i so much foreign minister nick beak from the babies. say you say the dumb in terms of weapons, it's when not if what is holding things up. is it a lack of will, or is it the logistical problems that the nato allies are facing and or so president zalinski has talked about the recent sanctions that the you can, the us have been saying will make a big difference. he says that they're spectacular. but they're not enough. did you get a sense that some of the nato allies were, may be holding back on weapons because they want sanctions to do the hard work festival? ah dancer, to the question to the 2nd question is no. i think they said 2 on 2 parallel tracks where we have we should different progress was, was a different elyse. some a more advanced on sanctions well being more reluctant on providing as was weapons . others to the contrary, are willing to provide was weapons by the more conservative when it comes to sanctions. the point that president make is, is, is very simple. we appreciate everything that his has been done on the sanctions

nick beake had all the reaction from the french headquarters in paris.om just after the exit polls at around eight o'clock. people saw on the screens that she has done the best that she has done in the three attempts to become the president. i wouldn't say it was subdued here but the initial euphoria has faded somewhat. as the party faithful, remember, these are mainly party members, some based in paris so not really representative of the le pen vote which is very strong in the south, they are trying to work out their tactics, their strategy for the next two weeks. you were asking before about where she would take her vote. the second loudest cheer of the night, after the initial cheer when the exit polls came out, was when they saw on the big screen eric zemmour endorsing her. clearly, that is 7% that he gained, you would imagine that those voters would be heading in marine le pen's direction. interestingly, when we were listening to what she was saying, it was a two tracked process. i thought on the one hand that the red meat for her loyalist supporter

nick beake, bbc news, paris.uding a three—month—old baby, are now known to have died following missile strikes in the southern ukrainian city of odesa. after the latest shelling, president zelensky announced that the us secretary of state, antony blinken, will arrive in kyiv today, as the country enters its third month of war with russia. vinnie mcaviney reports. thick black smoke cutting through the calm of a saturday afternoon in odesa. this was the aftermath of a missile strike on the city. holmes collapsed into one another. cars crushed and burnt by burnt out rubble and glass. through the debris firefighters led those it could still walk to safety. others were not so lucky. this man lived in the building and posted these images of his wife and three—month—old daughter who were both killed in the attack. the ukrainian the authorities have said the missiles were fired from the caspian sea, two hit military facilities with another two hitting residential buildings. translation: psi two hitting residential buildi

i'm nick beake at the le pen headquarters — where her supporters are hoping france will elect its first

let's head now to nick beake who is at marine le pen�*s campaign headquarters. ised herfirst round score from five years ago from 21% to over 23%, but has she done enough? to over 2396, but has she done enouuh? , ., ., , enough? the lights are on here but the -a enough? the lights are on here but the party continues _ enough? the lights are on here but the party continues because - enough? the lights are on here but the party continues because there i enough? the lights are on here but| the party continues because there is a sense here that this campaign has got momentum. talk to some people, they won't tell you out loud but you can see disappointment in their eyes, they thought the momentum may push marine le pen even higher. it is a higherfirst push marine le pen even higher. it is a higher first round than 2012 and 2017, there was an initial euphoria here, i can tell you the second biggest cheer was when the other far right candidate eric zemmour declared on the big screen that he would be supporting marine le pen and urged his supporters to follow suit so i t

i'm joined now by nick beake who is at marine le pen s campaign headquarters in the 12th arrondissementrters what is the mood there now? we are in the grounds _ what is the mood there now? we are in the grounds of _ what is the mood there now? we are in the grounds of a _ what is the mood there now? we are in the grounds of a beautiful - what is the mood there now? we are in the grounds of a beautiful park- in the grounds of a beautiful park to the east of the city centre where you are. i cannot show you many pictures of the beautiful grounds because everyone is packed into this building, a pavilion, hundreds of members of the media and hundreds of members of the media and hundreds of members of the campaign faithful, supporters of marine le pen and talking to people it looks like there was a spring in their step. there are smiles, handshakes, hugs, this is a campaign that feels it has momentum and not long to go until they find out how well their woman has done. people here feel the last two weeks have been crucial, there is a perception that world president macron has been engaged wit

nick beake, bbc news, paris. one of the issues was issue of the planet and climate change.is. iam i am interested to know if you feel encouraged at all by the fact that issues of climate have taken a bit more of a central role in the second phase of the selection? i more of a central role in the second phase of the selection?— phase of the selection? i would not sa i feel phase of the selection? i would not say i feel encouraged, _ phase of the selection? i would not say i feel encouraged, there - phase of the selection? i would not say i feel encouraged, there is - phase of the selection? i would not say i feel encouraged, there is an l say i feel encouraged, there is an urgency and the topic has not been present in the campaign overall. it has been addressed in the debate but what we face today is we have a very difficult choice to make between climate denial lists, marine le pen, who wants to dismantle the little progress we have made and a climate lyre, emmanuel macron.— lyre, emmanuel macron. those are stronu lyre, emmanuel macron. those are strong caricatures. _ lyre,

nick beake, bbc news, paris.resting in that report is that for so many years now, marine le pen and especially her father, now, marine le pen and especially herfather, head of the national front, were simply beyond the pale when it came to people choosing in the second round of the elections. in the first round, people vote with a heart and the second round ahead but the last time in 2017, marine le pen went through to the second round but was crushed by emanuel macron. in 2002, herfather did but was crushed by emanuel macron. in 2002, her father did the same thing againstjacques chirac and he was crushed as well. but what might happen this time? has she detoxified her party enough? the voters here have voted for the other candidates which include an even farther right candidate, eric zimmer, will his support go to marine le pen even though they are not close? he has detoxified her brand to a certain extent. there was also a far left candidate, jean—luc melenchon, where will his supporters go? they dislike macron

nick beake is at nato headquarters in brussels. lost that contact. you can follow all the latest developments on the war in ukraine by going to our online live coverage. follow it on bbc.co.uk/news or the bbc news app. now i'll hand you back to martine in london. our top story this lunchtime... the government's national insurance increase starts to hit many pay packets from today — to fund health and social care. coming up: all large restaurants in england will have to print calorie information on menus from today — but not everyone is happy with the idea. coming up on the bbc news channel... final preparations are under way for the start of the masters tomorrow, with all eyes on tiger woods, who says he does intend to play in the first men's golf major of the year. the biggest reform to divorce law in 50 years has come into force with no fault divorces becoming legal in england and wales. divorce affects tens of thousands of couples and families every year and until now in over half of those applications a person has had to blame

our correspondent, nick beake, has the latest from brussels.dshakes. but it is weapons, more weapons, he wants from the west to help his country fight russia. as he was welcomed to nato headquarters, i asked the ukrainian minister what he thinks about western allies refusing to send some military equipment because they don't want to trigger a wider war with president putin. i think the deal that ukraine is offering is fair. you give us weapons, we sacrifice our lives and the war is contained in ukraine. this is it. the nato secretary general insisted the western military alliance will carefully consider what more it could give ukraine. nato allies are providing many different types of weapons, also heavier systems, advanced systems, and also systems that can shoot down planes and, of course, attack russian armour. this is exactly as minister kuleba said — that, you know, ukraine is fighting a defensive war. the bond between the us and the uk looks much stronger than during the trump years. both countries claim their new sanctions on russia's bi

nick beake, bbc news, paris.ters, one or two are coming in and out now, is to take all that into account. different issues have risen and fallen in the course of the campaign, especially the last two weeks. let's get an assessment of where we are. i'm joined now by edouard lecerf who is the managing director of the tns sofres polling institute. let's start with the basics, the opinion polls, emmanuel macron, what is the score? the opinion polls, emmanuel macron, what is the score?— is the score? the latest polls that were published _ is the score? the latest polls that were published where _ is the score? the latest polls that were published where about - is the score? the latest polls that were published where about 55, l is the score? the latest polls that. were published where about 55, 50 is the score? the latest polls that - were published where about 55, 50 64 macron and four 40 54 le pen. it seems like now he has a pretty comfortable gap between the two of them. ten point difference. so we should see the r

nick beake is at nato hq in brussels. what support can nato offer? where you are, nato's position hasn't changed. it says it will continue to give ukraine military support, but doesn't want to plunge the west into a conflict with russia. ministers have been trying to work out the best way forward. we have heard that the czech republic are sending tanks. could it be more armoured vehicles are making their way there. we won't see any nato troops on the ground or in the skies above. sanctions too, the west are trying to hit vladimir putin's war chest. the united kingdom said it will freeze the assets of russia's biggest bank. the united states said they were targeted two of vladimir putin's daughters and in terms of what happens next, it is hard to tell. we know european diplomats about talking about trying to finalise a ban on the imports of russian coal. but to be honest, it is russian oil and gas that matter and listen to this figure we heard today, since the war began the eu has sent one billion euros worth of military aid to ukraine. that is exact

nick beake, bbc news, paris. selection being described as a sd i have heard this selection being described as a 3d election, those being for disappointment, dissolution and despair, so none of them are very positive elements to bring to the table for these candidates as they try to garner support and certainly marine le pen has been working on the disappointments of a emmanuel macron presidency, it will be harderfor him to bolster the sense of achievement is when that is the general mood across the country. let us find out about how this will go. i'm joined now by jean—philippe dubrulle who is the director of research at the french institute of public opinion. thank you forjoining us. we have had the turnout at this point in the day, it is a bit down on five years ago, but 26.4%, does that tell you much? , ., ago, but 26.496, does that tell you much? , ., . , much? this turnout rate is quite euual to much? this turnout rate is quite equal to the _ much? this turnout rate is quite equal to the rate _ much? this tu

let's head now to nick beake who is at marine le pen's campaign headquarters in the 12th arrondissementhe first round results five years ago, despite all the momentum that she had, she hasn't done as well, has she, as the pollsters had predicted? tim. pollsters had predicted? tim, interesting. _ pollsters had predicted? tim, interesting. i— pollsters had predicted? tim, interesting. i told _ pollsters had predicted? tim, interesting. i told you - pollsters had predicted? tim, interesting. i told you there i pollsters had predicted? t n interesting. i told you there was a sense of euphoria in the room just after the exit, people saw on the screens that she has done the best that she has done in the three attempts to become the president. i wouldn't say it was subdued here but the initial euphoria. as, these are mainly party members, so not really representative of the marine le pen vote which is very strong in the south, they are trying to work out their tactics, their strategy for their tactics, their strategy for the next two weeks. you are asking about where she would take her vote. t

it might be i so much foreign minister nick beak from the b, b, c. you say the dumb in terms of weapons. it's when not if what is holding things up, is it a lack of will or is it the logistical problems that the nato allies are facing? and also presidents zalinski has talked about the recent sanctions that the you can, the u. s. have been saying will make a big difference. he says that they're spectacular. but they're not enough. did you get a sense that some of the nato allies were, may be holding back on weapons because they won't sanctions to do the hard work? first of all. ah, the answer to the question to the 2nd question is no. i think they said 2 on 2 parallel tracks where we have we see different progress was, was a different allies. some are more advanced on sanctions while being more reluctant on providing us was weapons. others to the contrary, are willing to provide was weapons by the more conservative when it comes to sanctions appointed. president make is of is very simple. we appreciate everything that his has been done on the sanction

here's nick beake.aving its own a brexit moment her donald trump moment. a political earthquake, something that has huge repercussions, notjust in this country but across europe and beyond. both candidates will be campaigning now, to win more support. which brings us to the third place candidate from the far—left, jean—luc melenchon. he did far better than expected. but now he's out. and his voters could decide the final round of this election. this was his message. you must not give a single vote to marine le pen. you must not give a single vote to marine le pen. you must not give a single vote to marine le pen. now, i think you've got the message. don't vote le pen, he said — but he also didn't explicitly back emmanuel macron. for some, the prospect of a far right government means they'll vote for macron to stop that happening. emmanuel macron is very sensitive to the economy but marine le pen has, really. _ the economy but marine le pen has, really. it— the economy but marine le pen has, really. it i

let's get more on this with our correspondent in brussels, nick beake. hello to you.ll be making the trip later in the week, and as you say security concerns have been an important factor here. her team have made the decision now it is sufficiently safe for her to visit. we don't know the timings, we don't know the programme, we don't know whether she will be in the heart of the capital kyiv, orshe will be in the heart of the capital kyiv, or she will go bucha where president zelensky was and he is expected to talk about what he saw there. we know the russians have moved out and left behind a trail of devastation and destruction, and also these chilling accounts of what russian soldiers committed while they were there. we don't know if ursula von der leyen will see for herself some of these streets, but certainly she will leave behind in brussels this concerted diplomatic effort that continues, and they are talking about further sanctions that could be applied on the russian regime and i think we might get more information in the next 2a hours or so about what would b

let's get more now from our europe correspondent, nick beake.be re—elected in 20 years is something that has been celebrated by otherworldly just today and they have been congratulating him on this achievement, among them president president biden. france has opted for the familiar. and last night, emmanuel macron chose the eiffel tower for a victory speech, where he tried not to sound too triumphant. translation: my friends, we will need to be kind - and respectful, because our country harbours many doubts and divisions. so we will need to be strong. but nobody will be left by the wayside. it means keeping to the path of a centrist, pro—eu leader, who argues for economic reforms. sylvia voted for macron. it is not my first choice, but in the second round, that is what i want. does france feel divided to you? actually, i work in paris, but i live really far away from here, so i can really see in the little town around, they prefer marine le pen. so it's emmanuel macron for another five years. business as usual? well, not quite. last night, he ac

nick beake is in brussels for us. next couple of weeks, a renewed focus from russian forces or by russian forces on the eastern donbas region. what more at this stage will they be doing to try and support ukraine? i they be doing to try and support ukraine? ~ , ., ukraine? i think it is worth stressing _ ukraine? i think it is worth stressing despite - ukraine? i think it is worth stressing despite the - ukraine? i think it is worth l stressing despite the horrific images we have seen coming from the outskirts of kyiv and the chilling testimony of the russian allegations —— allegations of russian war crimes. the position of nato has not changed, they will do all they can to support ukraine but they really do not want to plunge the west into a full—blown war with russia. in nuclear armed power. that is the phraseology thatjens stoltenberg has been using. they are trying to do two things, send military equipment to ukraine and increase the sanctions on president putin and his government in moscow. what we are seeing in

i asked nick beake, the bbc�*s europe correspondent, who�*s been covering the first round and is nowgh she�*s softened some aspects of her appeal to the french people — for example, she no longer says that france should come out of the single currency, the euro — she basically, it would seem, wants to dismantle the european union from within. so she won�*t say out loud, "france would be pulling out of the eu on day one of my presidency," but she�*s talking about french law being more important than european law. she�*s talking about stopping payments going to brussels. you simply can�*t do that. so i think there would be a lot of nervousness if she got in and was continuing to talk about those things that she knows full well the. ..cause of those, the impact of those, would lead to some sort of movement where france is leaving the club. still, i suppose we�*ve got to say that the bookies in britain think that macron is going to win. if you look at the opinion polls, yes, we need to take them with a pinch of salt, yes, they wax and wane. some are showing that it could be 51—49 in favo