Those of us in London are pausing our live coverage now, and our team in Singapore will pick things up again in a few hours.

Our writers today were Alex Therrien, James FitzGerald, James Harness, George Wright, Claire Heald, Jack Burgess, Heather Sharp, Max Maxta and Dulcie Lee.

The editors were Chris Giles, Claudia Allen, Emma Owen and Andrew Humphrey.

As ever, you can find any major developing stories and in depth coverage on our home page.

Goodnight.

Image source, Getty Images

We'll be pausing our coverage shortly, so here's a recap of what's been happening in Ukraine today.

Proposed oil ban

The day started with the EU announcing a new plan to penalise Russia financially. It wants a total ban on oil imports from Russia by the end of the year.

But several EU countries have voiced objections - most notably Hungary, who said it would veto the plan in its current form, as it would destroy the Hungarian economy.

Missile strikes

On the ground, several explosions have been reported in various cities across Ukraine. The UK's Ministry of Defence says Russia is trying to stop Ukraine from replenishing its supplies.

There has been a suggestion that Russia will use its annual Victory Day celebrations - which it holds every year to mark victory against Nazi Germany in 1945 - to formally declare war on Ukraine. Russia has denied this. It is currently referred to as a special military operation.

Mariupol steelworks

There appears to be an escalation in fighting at the Azovstal steel plant, where the last of Ukraine's fighters in the city are holding out, along with hundreds of civilians.

Ukrainian officials say Russian troops have now entered the facility. Russia has said it will open a humanitarian corridor out of the plant tomorrow, but this has not been confirmed by Ukrainian officials.

Theatre death toll

Also in Mariupol, analysis by Associated Press, external suggests twice as many people as previously thought died in a Russian strike on a theatre in the city in March. Previous estimates put the death toll at 300, but the news agency now puts that at 600.

Another 344 evacuees from various south-western cities including Mariupol have arrived in Zaporizhzhia, according to Ukraine's deputy prime minister Irina Vereshchuk.

In a post on Telegram, she thanked the UN and Red Cross for their help, saying: "These are women, children and elderly people from Mariupol, Manhush, Berdiansk, Tokmak and Vasylivka. All of them have just arrived in Zaporozhzhia".

The UN's humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, Osnat Lubrani, said many came with nothing but the clothes they were wearing.

"We will now support them during this difficult time, including with much- needed psychological support," she said.

Lubrani added more must be done "to make sure all civilians caught up in fighting can leave, in the direction they wish".

The significance of Russian celebrations on 9 May's Victory Day is not lost on Ukrainians.

MP Alyona Shkrum says she believes there will be an increase in fighting, inspired by the celebrations.

Shkrum says Vladimir Putin is a "delusional dictator" who will turn the traditionally-celebrated day into a "big fight right now against Nazis".

One of Putin’s justifications for his invasion of Ukraine is that he wants to "denazify" the country.

Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, has dismissed speculation that Russia will declare all-out war against Ukraine on 9 May.

What it is currently doing in Ukraine is described as a "special military operation".

Will Vernon
Reporting from Moscow

In Russia, tanks, missile launchers and armoured vehicles thundered through central Moscow this evening as the military held another dress rehearsal for the big Victory Day parade on 9 May.

Muscovites gathered to watch the weaponry roll past, some taking photos and waving to the troops perched atop the tanks.

The 9 May military parade on Red Square is an annual event to mark the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War Two, although it has added significance this year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Some analysts suggest President Putin wants to announce some sort of victory on Victory Day, although it is difficult to see what further progress Russian troops can make in Ukraine in the space of just a few days.

There has even been speculation here that Mr Putin will announce some sort of mobilisation – such as a call-up of reservists – although a Kremlin spokesperson denied today any such plans were in the works, calling the rumours “rubbish".

Image source, Reuters

Since the war started, we have heard little about life in two areas of Ukraine that were seized by Russian-backed proxies in 2014. But one resident in the city of Luhansk has told the BBC how it's very much like living in a powder keg.

It's especially risky for men because of the constant threat of being drafted into the local militia to fight for Russia against the Ukrainian army. "Total mobilisation is still happening – people call it mogilisation after the Russian word mogila which means grave," she says.

"Men have either stayed hiding in their homes for almost three months, or they go out and pretend not to care, because they simply have to get out to work as there are no other sources of income.

"There is an acute shortage of men - craftsmen, repairmen, salesmen and builders. You keep hearing the phrase 'I'll come when the war is over'. Fear is acute too: wives fear for their husbands, mothers for their sons.

"There are many dead and many funerals. At Easter and on May Day, they were going around drafting men direct from the cemetery."

Men who are drafted into the militia complain of being badly treated and she says they’re so badly equipped "they almost have to use their helmets to dig trenches; they’re badly fed, there aren’t enough uniforms and they aren’t allowed to call home".

Read more: Why Russia is trying to encircle Ukraine's east

We've been reporting on the ongoing attack by Russian forces on the last remaining Ukrainian stronghold in Mariupol, the Azovstal steel plant.

We posted on this video earlier, that shows multiple explosions at the steelworks and gives an idea of the scale of the complex, and the bombardment it has suffered.

Alongside the Ukrainian soldiers, it is thought there are hundreds of civilains, including more than 30 children, sheltering in the underground tunnels at the complex.

The footage was shared by MVD DNR, a media outlet for pro-Russian separatists the Donetsk People’s Republic.

The BBC has not been able to independently verify the date on which the video was recorded, but it is thought to be after 3 May.

Image source, Getty Images

Away from the fighting in Mariupol, Russia is also attempting to hamper Ukrainian resupply efforts with missile strikes across the country, the UK's Ministry of Defence says.

Ground operations are still focused on eastern Ukraine, it says in its latest assessment of the fighting, external, and the targeting of key cities highlights Russia's desire to control access to the Black Sea.

It says non-military targets such as schools, hospitals and residential properties continue to be hit, indicating Russia's willingness to target civilian infrastructure in an attempt to weaken Ukrainian resolve.

Ukrainian forces inside Mariupol's Azovstal steel works have been fighting "difficult bloody battles" against Russian troops for a second day, the commander of the controversial Azov regiment said.

In a brief video message posted on Telegram, commander Denis Prokopenko said: "I am proud of my soldiers who are making superhuman efforts to contain the pressure of the enemy... the situation is extremely difficult."

The message comes after a Ukrainian official said Russian forces had entered the territory of the plant - the final stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the shattered city of Mariupol.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked the UN secretary general for help to rescue the remaining injured Ukrainians at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol.

In a phone call on Wednesday, he thanked Antonio Guterres for his efforts to secure evacuations earlier this week.

And he asked for further assistance: "The lives of the people who remain there are in danger. Everyone is important to us. We ask for your help in saving them," he said, according to his press service, external.

Image source, EPA

Russian forces are reported to have entered the Azovstal steelworks, the last hold-out of Ukrainian forces in the southern port city of Mariupol. Russia has besieged and bombarded the city for weeks. It is key to Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine. But why?

• Land bridge: Control of the city gives the Russians a land bridge from Russia, through parts of the Donbas region held by Russian-backed separatists, right through to Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.

• Hitting Ukraine's economy: Mariupol has long been a strategically important port on the Sea of Azov, part of the Black Sea. In normal times, the city is a key export hub for Ukraine's steel, coal and corn. Losing it is a major blow to Ukraine's economy.
• Russian propaganda: Among Mariupol's defenders are the Azov Brigade, which has links to far-right extremists, historically including neo-Nazis. They form only the tiniest fraction of Ukraine's fighting forces, but their presence is often used as a pretext for Russia's claim to be ridding Ukraine of Nazis.
• Free up forces: An end to the prolonged battle for the city would release more of Russia's troops for its push to take control of the remaining parts of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine, made up of Luhansk and Donetsk.

Read more: Why Mariupol is so important to Russia's plan

Image source, .

Image source, Reuters

As many as 600 people were killed when Russia bombed a theatre in Mariupol in March, analysis by the Associated Press (AP) news agency suggests, external.

At the time of the strike, the word "children" had been written in giant letters on the ground outside the building, which was being used as a bomb shelter.

The attack is believed to have caused the worst known loss of life in a single strike since the invasion began, and AP's investigation puts the death toll at around double the previous estimate of 300.

The news agency spoke to 23 survivors, rescuers and those familiar with the theatre's use as a bomb shelter.

They also built a 3D model of the building's floor plan and examined photos and videos of the theatre from before, during and after the event.

Image source, .

Russia's military says it will open humanitarian corridors out of the besieged Azovstal steel complex for three days from Thursday, Reuters news agency reports.

The military said routes out of the Mariupol plant will open from 08:00 to 18:00 Moscow time (GMT+3) on 5, 6, and 7 May.

During this time Russian forces will cease military activities and withdraw units to a safe distance, the military said in a post online.

We haven't heard anything about potential evacuations yet from Ukrainian officials.

Dozens of civilians were evacuated from the Azovstal plant late last week, with a large group of them travelling to Ukraine-controlled Zaporizhzhia.

Image source, Reuters

Vitaly Shevchenko
BBC Monitoring

There are reports of several Ukrainian cities being shelled this evening - Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, but information is patchy at this stage.

Russia launched multiple missile strikes against targets across Ukraine yesterday evening, too.

BBC Monitoring

Dnipro's mayor Borys Filatov has said on Facebook that at least one Russian missile has hit the centre of the city.

"A strike right in the centre of Dnipro. Do not leave the shelters! Wait for official information from the military administration," he said.

Ukrainian railways CEO Oleksandr Kamyshyn has said Dnipro's railway facilities have been hit.

"Another missile strike on railway infrastructure in Dnipro. No casualties among employees," he said on Telegram.

Russian forces have entered the territory of the Azovstal steel works complex in Mariupol, a Ukrainian official has told a US broadcaster.

The Azovstal plant is the last hold-out of Ukrainian forces in the destroyed port city, with civilians still sheltering underground in the sprawling industrial complex.

David Arakhamia, Ukraine's ruling parliamentary faction head, told the broadcaster: "Attempts to storm the plant continue for the second day. Russian troops are already on the territory of Azovstal."

Information on the ground has been scarce, but speaking to RFE/RL, Arakhamia said Ukraine's government was in contact with fighters at the plant. It comes after Mariupol's mayor earlier said they had lost communications with those inside.

We'll bring you more detail on what's going on at the plant as and when we get it.

Image source, .

Sophie Williams
Reporting from Lviv

Here in Lviv, the air raid sirens have gone off for the first time today.

It comes after a series of strikes on the outskirts of the city yesterday that took out three power substations.

I'm currently in the bunker of a shopping mall. Everyone here is waiting around for the all clear.

I'm sharing the bunker with babies, toddlers and someone’s family pet. The mood is quite calm but people are checking their phones for information.

Now to Finland, where Russia's invasion of Ukraine has sparked a change of public opinion over Nato membership.

The country, along with Sweden, has long held to a policy of military neutrality, but there are expectations that both will launch bids to join the alliance in the near future.

Today, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace is visiting Helsinki and he's said the UK would aid Finland if it were attacked by Russia, regardless of whether the country were a member of Nato.

"It is inconceivable that Britain would not come to the support of Finland, or Sweden, if it was ever attacked, without any big formal agreement. We are European countries who share the same values, who have deep, long histories," he said.

Earlier, Finland's prime minister, Sanna Marin, said that in a Nato membership application, the key issue would be to keep the ratification process as short as possible.

Read more: What is Nato and how has it responded to Russia's invasion of Ukraine?

Image source, Lehtikuva/Heikki Saukkomaa

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is "not going to agree to a frozen conflict" with Russia, he has said during a video address at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council Summit.

Frozen conflicts are zones of ongoing instability, which Russia has previously been accused of using to its advantage.

Zelensky says previous agreements with Russia such as Minsk-1 and 2, which sought to end the conflict in Ukraine's Donbas region, "were violated" by Russia and "were not serious".

"Ukraine will definitely not go into such a diplomatic swamp again," Zelensky has said.

Image source, .

A video showing multiple explosions at the Mariupol steelworks has been posted on social media.

The footage is from MVD DNR, a media outlet for pro-Russian separatists the Donetsk People’s Republic.

The BBC has not been able to independently verify the date on which the video was recorded, but it is thought to be sometime after 3 May.

More than 100 people have managed to escape from Azovstal over the past few days, but many remain inside the complex which humanitarian rescue groups describe as "hell".