A "technical pause" has been taken in negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian officials until tomorrow, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak says.

Private cars have been able to leave the besieged Ukrainian southeastern city of Mariupol, according to its city council.

As of 13:00 local time, 160 cars had left the city along the humanitarian corridor that heads into the Russian-occupied town of Berdyansk, the city council said in a post on Telegram., external

Several attempts to evacuate civilians stuck in Mariupol - which has a population of 400,000 in peacetime - have failed in the past week as plans to let them travel through the humanitarian corridor had to be abandoned due to continued Russian shelling.

The emergency coordinator for Médecins Sans Frontières in Ukraine, Alex Wade, described the conditions in Mariupol over the weekend as "horrifying", with little access to food or running water.

Nearly three weeks after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, scenes of destruction can be seen across this vast country.

More than 2.5 million refugees have fled their homeland since the Russian aggression began on 24 February, the UN estimates.

Talks between the two sides continue, with Ukraine pushing for an immediate ceasefire.

Image source, State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, EPA

Image source, Reuters

In a bizarre turn of events, US tech billionaire Elon Musk appears to have challenged Russian president Vladimir Putin to a one-on-one fight, suggesting that the winner decide the fate of Ukraine.

Ukrainian politicians so far have welcomed the offer, which may have been made tongue-in-cheek. Kyiv's mayor Vitali Klitschko, himself a former boxer, replied with three strong arm emojis.

The Russian president is yet to respond. Musk has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine throughout the invasion.

Earlier this month one of the companies owned by the California-based tech entrepreneur, Starlink, supplied Ukraine with a number of satellite dishes intended to protect internet access in the country.

The Ukrainian port city of Mariupol has been continually bombarded by Russian strikes.

Recent footage captured by a drone over the city shows dozens of burning buildings and roads hit by shelling.

Alice Evans
BBC News

Image source, Maxine Taylor

The UK government will set out details later of a new visa scheme that will help people to host Ukrainian refugees in their own homes.

Maxine Taylor is planning on signing up and says there'd be room for two or three people in her four-bedroom house in Godalming, Surrey.

Maxine, who is self-employed and works part-time, tells me the "peace and quiet" of her more rural home might be a better option for traumatised refugees than a busy city.

But she does want more information about the scheme - such as whether or not she'd be taxed on the £350 monthly payment she'll receive as a host.

She also wants to make sure anyone she takes in gets the mental health support they will need after fleeing a war zone.

Maxine says she's been wanting to help Ukrainians "since day one" of the invasion and has felt "frustrated" that the government's visa schemes have been "so slow" to get off the ground. Conservative MPs are among those voicing similar criticism.

"I just feel I'd like to do my bit," says Maxine, who adds that images of young women and men signing up to fight for their country have "really touched me".

Russia has continued its invasion of Ukraine with forces attacking from the north and south of the country.

Russian naval forces have cut Ukraine off from maritime trade by controlling its Black Sea coast, the UK defence ministry says.

And the assault on Kyiv continues with at least one person dying during a strike on a block of flats. Russian forces are attempting to encircle and cut off the Ukrainian capital, with troops now moving towards the city from multiple positions.

You can find all the latest maps and graphics here.

Image source, Serhiy Orlov

The BBC has received more photos of the devastation in Mariupol, a key port city, battered by Russian shelling.

They were taken by various citizens in recent days, deputy mayor Serhiy Orlov said.

City officials say there is a desperate need for food, water, medicines and electricity.

Image source, Serhiy Orlov

Image source, Serhiy Orlov

Image source, Reuters

We have been hearing reports of a missile strike in the Donetsk region of Ukraine this morning.

Russia's defence ministry says 20 people have been killed and nine wounded in the attack. The BBC has not been able to independently verify these claims.

Reuters reports that the Kremlin has described the attack as a tragedy and an attack on civilians, adding that "it appears the bosses of Ukraine across the ocean are giving orders to the Ukrainian army".

Ukraine has denied the accusation that it launched the attack.

Donetsk, in the east of Ukraine, is one of the rebel-held separatist areas where fighting against Ukrainian forces has been taking place since 2014. One of Russian President Vladimir Putin's demands to stop the war is the recognition of the independence of the eastern region.

Sarah Rainsford
BBC Eastern Europe Correspondent, Dnipro

With fighting to the north, east and south, Dnipro is bracing for Russian troops to reach it. Many people have left town: our own bomb shelter is emptier, even though the number of air raid sirens has increased.

But we’ve seen a quiet defiance among those who’ve stayed and a giant mobilisation to support those defending the city.

This weekend, we found a women’s fashion house producing underwear and balaclavas for the soldiers: a couple of weeks back, the seamstresses were working with silk and fur not thermals and fleece.

"When the war started, we were afraid to go outside," designer Anastasia told me. "Then we realised we need to help however we can."

These days, the team don’t even stop for the air raid sirens because Anastasia says they want to "work to the maximum." Her own mother and godmother are now sewing alongside her; all their materials are paid for by donations.

They also sew warm suits in bright coloured fleece for children whose families fled to Dnipro with next to nothing. Demand is huge: temperatures have been at sub-zero, and troops are guarding key sites and roads 24/7 all over the city.

But the seamstresses are struggling to get the fabric they need. A key warehouse is in Kharkiv, which is under siege, so they can only sew until stocks run out or they can source more from abroad.

For Ukrainians, this war is personal. Marina Taran, one of the seamstresses, tells us her son Alexander was wounded in a mortar attack near Kyiv a few days ago.

"I very rarely cry, but this is utterly awful," she told me, eyes filling up. "I just want us to have enough strength to be able to fight to the end, for our country to be free. And I’ll do everything I can for that."

We have more from the Kremlin now - including on the claim by US officials that Russia had asked China for military help.

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Russia has not asked China for military assistance and that it has "independent potential to continue its special operation in Ukraine" - what it calls the invasion.

He says Russia's plans for the Ukraine operation will be "realised in full" and in line with the original timetable.

The Kremlin has also said that comments from the US and EU about the operation not going as President Vladimir Putin would like have been noted in Moscow, according to Reuters.

Image source, Reuters

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Moscow had planned to avoid civilian casualties and to refrain from storming major population centres, including Kyiv.

But in remarks broadcast on Rossiya 24 TV, Peskov says urban warfare will "inevitably lead to a large number of casualties among civilians" and adds: "The ministry of defence, while ensuring maximum safety of the peaceful population, does not rule out the possibility of placing under its full control major population centres... with the exception of zones used for humanitarian evacuations".

He also says US and EU officials were "pushing Russia towards storming major cities in Ukraine with a view to place responsibility for civilian deaths on our country".

"We think that such a position is provocative," he adds.

Image source, Maxar Technologies

Russian forces have damaged a high-voltage line connecting the former nuclear plant at Chernobyl to the power grid, Ukraine's state energy company has said.

The damage apparently occurred soon after electricity supplies to the facility were restored, but the BBC has not been able to verify this report.

Ukrenergo, Ukraine's state energy company, did not say whether the former nuclear plant had lost all external power as a result of the damage.

The grid operator says a repair crew must be given immediate access to the site, which is occupied by Russian forces, to inspect any damage.

Image source, Anton Gerashenko/Telegram

One person has been killed and six injured after the falling wreckage of a shot down Russian missile struck a residential street in Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities say.

The missile's debris destroyed a bus and set ablaze a residential building in the capital's Kurenivka district after being intercepted by Ukraine's air defences, Ukraine's State Emergency Service says.

It adds the bus was not carrying any passengers but was completely destroyed.

Photos shared by Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior ministry, show the bus' twisted remains strewn across the street as smoke rises from the damaged building. What appear to be the trails of anti-aircraft missiles are seen in the sky above.

Image source, Anton Gerashenko/Telegram

Image source, PA Media

Members of an anarchist group have occupied a central London property linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.

The Anarchist Action Network say they are occupying the mansion in Belgrave Square in protest against Russia's invasion of Ukraine and to show "solidarity" with the people of Ukraine and Russian citizens "who never agreed to this madness".

The group says the property will serve as a "refugee support, for people of Ukraine and people of all nations and ethnicity".

Some of the protesters told attending press that there is no hot water in the house and no food in the fridges, suggesting the property has not been lived in for a while. They say they do not intend to live or sleep at the property, but will occupy it on rotation.

Last week, the UK added Deripaska, an industrialist with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, to the list of people it has sanctioned. Deripaska has been sanctioned in the US , externalsince April 2018.

Image source, Getty Images

Laurence Peter
BBC News

Image source, Serhiy Orlov

Mariupol, a key Ukrainian port city, is suffering "constant shelling, bombing and some street battles", deputy mayor Serhiy Orlov tells the BBC.

Thousands of civilians have been trapped there for nearly two weeks, surrounded by Russian troops firing rockets and shells, which have destroyed many buildings. City officials say there is a desperate need for food, water, medicines and electricity.

"Humanitarian crisis and genocide continues," Orlov says.

The city is strategic because capturing it would enable Russia to link up its forces in Crimea and the eastern Donbas region, controlling the coast.

Ukraine says the civilian death toll there has risen above 2,500.

One of Kyiv's negotiators has shared an image of the talks between Ukraine and Russia, which have now entered their fourth round and are taking place via video call.

Ukrainian official Mykhailo Podolyak says both sides have now laid out their positions.

Earlier he said the latest talks would focus on establishing a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Russian troops, and security guarantees for Ukraine.

Image source, State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Ukrainian emergency services say that a Russian air strike on a block of flats in Kyiv has killed one person - revising a previous death toll down by one.

Three people were taken to hospital and nine others treated at the scene after the nine-storey apartment building in Kyiv's Obolon district was hit. It added that 15 residents were saved and 63 evacuated.

The strike on the northern suburb took place early this morning as Russian troops edged closer to the capital. These images were taken at the scene this morning:

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

As we reported earlier at least one person has died and 12 injured in a Russian air strike on a residential building in Ukraine's capital Kyiv.

Firefighters attended the scene in Obolon district in the aftermath of the attack and as you can see in this video they helped to remove people and their belongings from the damaged building.

If you're just joining our live coverage, here's what's been happening on day 19 of the invasion:

• Russian and Ukrainian negotiators have begun a fourth round of talks aimed at stopping the conflict. Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak says these talks will focus on establishing a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Russian troops, and security guarantees for Ukraine
• But Russia's assault has continued with its forces bombarding a block of flats and an aircraft manufacturing plant in the capital, Kyiv

• Ukraine will try to evacuate trapped civilians through 10 "humanitarian corridors", including from towns near Kyiv and in the eastern region of Luhansk, its deputy PM said

• China has described claims by US officials that Russia asked Beijing for military assistance in Ukraine as "disinformation". The US had warned Beijing it would face harsh "consequences" should it support Moscow
• Meanwhile, Reuters reports that India is considering taking up a Russian offer to buy its crude oil and other commodities at discounted prices, amid heavy Western sanctions against Moscow