Image source, Facebook/Zelensky

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has indicated progress in the peace talks, following Tuesday’s round of negotiations.

In a video address late last night, Zelensky revealed “the positions in the negotiations already sound more realistic.”

But he added that “time is still needed for the decisions to be in the interests of Ukraine”.

Talks between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators are set to continue later.

President Zelensky will also address US Congress today.

If you are just waking up here in the UK or joining us from elsewhere in the world here's a quick catch up of what's been happening.

• Russian forces continue to target cities across Ukraine with shelling hitting buildings in the capital Kyiv this morning
• Two people have been injured after a 12-storey residential building was hit in the Shevchenko district
• A curfew is underway in Kyiv as the city's mayor Vitali Klitschko warns of "a difficult and dangerous moment"
• But there seems to have been some progress in peace talks between the two sides with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky saying they are beginning to "sound more realistic"
• Negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak says there are "fundamental contradictions" during the talks but "certainly room for compromise"

• Elsewhere, in the besieged southern city of Mariupol the deputy mayor says Russian troops are holding 400 people, including doctors and patients, "like hostages"

• Russian forces continue to struggle to advance as they battle with Ukraine's terrain as well as its forces, the UK's Ministry of Defence says.

In a daily assessment of the state of the Russian invasion, the UK's ministry of defence says Moscow's forces are struggling to maintain the pace of their advance across Ukraine.

In analysis posted on Twitter, security officials say Russian troops are struggling to overcome challenges posed by Ukraine's terrain, which has confined them to the country's roads and highways.

Officials also note that the destruction of bridges by Ukrainian forces has "played a key role in stalling Russia’s advance".

"The tactics of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have adeptly exploited Russia’s lack of manoeuvre, frustrating the Russian advance and inflicting heavy losses on the invading forces," the assessment says.

A recap of the main development in Ukraine in the last few hours: Kyiv's emergency services say that two residential buildings were hit by Russian shelling at around 6am, injuring two people. The attack comes as the city hunkers down under a curfew. Officials have warned that this is a "difficult and dangerous moment" for the capital.

This is Tessa Wong and Frances Mao signing off in Singapore. We're handing over this live page to our colleagues Chris Giles, Matt Murphy, Doug Faulkner and Alice Evans in London, who will bring you the latest updates.

Ukraine's Armed Forces have released their morning briefing where they say they "managed to inflict devastating blows on groups of occupying troops."

They say their airforce destroyed three Russian war planes, one helicopter, three unmanned aerial vehicles and shot down two missiles. The BBC is yet to independently verify these claims.

Ukraine's army also said that while Russia continued to bomb "densely populated areas of Ukrainian cities" this week, its troops have failed to advance on several fronts, including Donestk, Luhansk and Mykolaiv.

"The enemy continues to bear losses on retreats in certain areas," the statement says.

In an earlier post from last night, Ukraine's army asserted that Russia was struggling to even consolidate the ground it had gained, and was also being forced to call up military cadets to the frontline.

Russia is also seeking foreign fighters to make up for troop losses.

The UK's Defence Ministry in its latest intel brief , externalwrote: "As a a result of these losses, it is likely Russia is struggling to conduct offensive operations in the face of sustained Ukraine resistance."

Meanwhile earlier this morning, there were also unconfirmed reports on social media of explosions in the southern cities of Odesa and Zaporizhzhia.

Oliver Carroll, a correspondent for The Economist, said he heard loud noises in Odessa which could be air defence systems shooting down projectiles.

And in Zaporizhzhia, the secretary of the city council Anatoliy Kurtev wrote on Telegram, external that an explosion hit a railway station.

There are no details yet on whether there are casualties in these areas. We'll bring you the latest once we find out more.

Image source, State Emergency Services in Kyiv

Blasts were heard in the capital Kyiv earlier this morning, according to social media reports.

The city's emergency services now say that a 12-storey residential building in the Shevchenko district was hit by Russian shelling at around 6am. A neighbouring nine-storey building was also damaged, authorities say.

They've added that two people were injured and 35 were evacuated from the building. The fire was put out at 7.45am and rescuers are now searching for survivors.

Videos circulated earlier on social media showed large plumes of smoke wafting into the air from buildings.

Residents across the city remain hunkered down in bunkers, underground shelters and their homes amid a two-day curfew.

Officials have warned that it is a "difficult and dangerous" moment for the capital.

Image source, State Emergency Services in Kyiv

Image source, State Emergency Services in Kyiv

A woman crying onboard a train to Poland, a man cycling passed a bombed building, a tank patrolling an almost-deserted street - here are some of the most recent pictures of Ukraine.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

The US Secretary of State has tweeted about the deaths of Fox News journalists Pierre Zakrzewski, 55, an Irish national, and Oleksandra Kuvshinova, 24, a Ukrainian.

They were killed outside Kyiv when their vehicle came under fire from Russian troops.

"I am grateful to all those risking their lives to show the world what is happening in Ukraine," Anthony Blinken said.

"The United States condemns Russia's ongoing violence, which is putting the safety of journalists and other media workers in Ukraine at risk."

On Sunday, another journalist and war zone veteran, Brent Renaud, died when Russian troops shot him at a checkpoint in Irpin, just outside Kyiv.

Here's a quick summary of Russia's offensives based on the latest analysis by the Institute of the Study of War. The US-based thinktank uses OSINT and news reports to craft a frontline assessment each day., external

• Kyiv: While Russian forces launched scattered attacks on Irpin and Guta-Mezhyhirksa - areas just outside the capital - on Monday and Tuesday, they have not taken any broader action against the city in the past 24 hours
• Mariupol: Russia continues to assault the southern city from the east and the west
• Kharkiv: Russian forces are struggling with shortage of ammunition in their attempt to encircle this north-eastern city
• Kherson region: Russia falsely claimed control of this region on Tuesday, but haven't made any advance to either Zaporizhya or Mykolaiv - the key cities
• Odesa: Russia is not ready yet to launch a sea-based operation against the southern port city as they haven't established troops on the ground here

Frances Mao
BBC News

It's about 6.30am in Ukraine, and if you're just joining us, welcome. Here's a summary of what you need to know:

• Air sirens have sounded out across several cities as Ukraine wakes up to another day of the invasion
• The fourth round of peace negotiations have made some headway. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky says the talks are beginning to “sound more realistic”
• It comes as three European leaders - the prime ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia - risked a train ride to Kyiv to meet with Zelensky and show support
• "You’re not alone. Your fight is our fight,” Slovenia’s PM told the Ukrainian people
• Kyiv has entered a 35-hour curfew as the capital remains a target for heavy shelling – with air strikes killing at least five people yesterday
• Meanwhile, in the southern city of Mariupol, Russian troops are holding hostage 400 doctors and patients, the local mayor says
• The US is expected to announce a further $1bn (£777m) in new military assistance to Ukraine
• And the UN says 70,000 children every day have become refugees since the war began on 24 February. The total number of refugees from Ukraine has surpassed three million.

Image source, EPA

Pre-dawn sirens have gone off again across several cities in Ukraine. They're there to warn people to shelter from potential incoming missile strikes.

Sirens have gone off in Kyiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Odesa, Dnipro, report local media and journalists on the ground.

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal says that his country has suffered more than $500bn (£383bn) in damages since the invasion began - and insists that Russia pays for the restoration of Ukraine after the war.

Shmyhal did not go into how exactly reparations could be collected, even if Ukraine did win the war, but mentioned seizing Russian property abroad. He added that Ukraine would also seek financial assistance from allies.

The PM made the comments at Tuesday's meeting with the leaders of three neighbouring nations - Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia - who've travelled to Kyiv in solidarity.

Image source, Getty Images

The president of Lithuania has said that stronger international sanctions should be enforced against Russia.

Gitanas Nauseda told the BBC that Russian behaviour would not change and the Western powers needed to be more decisive.

He said the Swift banking communications system should be closed to all Russian banks, not closed selectively as it is now.

He also said that European reliance on Russian oil and gas should be reduced, and that Lithuania was ready to end imports from Russia.

The former Soviet Baltic states have been vocal about needing more military support to defend against possible Russian aggression.

A brief recap of our main story these last few hours: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a late night video address says peace talks with Russia are beginning to "sound more realistic, but time is still needed" to reach a breakthrough.

And with that, this is Jude Sheerin signing off in Washington DC. I'm handing over the reins to my colleagues Tessa Wong and Frances Mao in Singapore who will continue to bring you the latest on the developments in Ukraine.

Image source, Getty Images

The US Senate has voted unanimously to condemn Vladimir Putin as a war criminal.

The rare cross-party vote called on the International Criminal Court at The Hague to probe Putin's decision to invade Ukraine.

Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer said in a speech on Tuesday ahead of the vote that Putin should be held accountable for "atrocities" in Ukraine.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a sponsor of the bill, said in a statement: "The next step for me is to work with our British allies and hopefully others to create an intel cell that will make available to the public Russian military units engaged in war crimes and start naming their commanders.

"A name-and-shame campaign is in the making."

Image source, Getty Images

In an interview with CNN on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken predicted a free Ukraine would exist longer than Russia's president.

"First of all, there's going to be a Ukraine, an independent Ukraine a lot longer than there's going to be Vladimir Putin," he told presenter Wolf Blitzer.

"One way or the other, Ukraine will be there and at some point Putin won’t.”

Image source, Anna Tymchenko

Anna Tymchenko was scared. She had been in labour for hours but her hometown was being bombed and her apartment was shaking. She and her husband were trapped with no electricity, running water or doctor.

The small town of Bucha, 30km (18.5 miles) from the capital Kyiv, has faced almost relentless bombardment.

Anna's husband, Volodymyr, was torn between remaining in Bucha or trying to flee. When they did finally try to escape by car, they had to turn back when they heard that a column of Russian military vehicles was heading their way.

"We then decided to stay in the apartment," 21-year-old Anna told the BBC.

When she went into labour late on 7 March, she called her neighbours for help. They agreed to come, but none of them had experience delivering babies.

"When the baby's head came out, we got scared," one of the neighbours, Viktoria, said. "She was blue and we didn't know what to do. She didn't cry at first - we started hitting her, and then she cried and we all cheered."

Read the full story here.

Image source, AFP

On Tuesday, the prime ministers of Poland, Slovenia and the Czech Republic travelled to Kyiv where they met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Slovenian PM Janez Jansa told Ukraine's people: "You're not alone. Your fight is our fight and together we will prevail."

Czech PM Petr Fiala said: "You are fighting for your lives; your freedom. But we know that you are also fighting for our lives and our freedom."

"We admire your courage and we will continue to provide more aid and support," he continued, adding that "Europe stands with" the people of Ukraine.

Both leaders also said, in Ukrainian: "Glory to Ukraine."

The visit was the first from any foreign leader to Ukraine since Russia's invasion last month.

Read more on their visit: European leaders risk train ride to meet Zelensky

It's just after 03:00 in Lviv, a city in Ukraine's west that has so far mostly escaped the brunt of the war.

Air sirens are currently going off, according to reports by journalists there, indicating that civilians should take shelter in underground bunkers in case of aerial attacks from Russia.

Only two days ago, a military base outside the city not far from the Polish border was struck with multiple Russian cruise missiles, killing at least 35 Ukrainian troops.

Read more about the attack here: 'Sky turned red' as missiles hit Lviv military base