Image source, Reuters

At least seven buses carrying more Ukrainian fighters are departing the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, Reuters news agency reports.

The fighters, who were escorted by pro-Russian forces, did not appear to be wounded, a witness told the agency.

On Monday more than 260 Ukrainian fighters left the steelworks in the besieged city and were taken to Russian-controlled territory.

The Ukrainian government said earlier today that it was working on the "next stages" of the evacuation of the remaining people from the plant.

Image source, Reuters

Ukraine has blamed the current suspension of peace talks with Russia on Moscow's failure to find areas for compromise.

"The negotiation process is on hold," Mykhaylo Podolyak, a presidential aide was cited as saying, in a statement issued by the presidency.

Podolyak, who is also Kyiv's lead negotiator in talks with the Russian delegation, said Russia did not appear to understand that the war is "no longer taking place according to its rules, its timetable, or its plans."

"The strategic objective of the Russians is: all or nothing," said Poldolyak, suggesting there was no room for flexibility in Moscow's negotiations so far.

Talks between Russia and Ukraine have been held regularly, both in person and via video call, since the invasion began on 24 February - but have so far failed to yield any positive results.

As we reported in an earlier post, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko confirmed there were currently no ongoing peace talks "in any form", suggesting Ukraine had "practically withdrawn from the negotiating process".

Image source, Reuters

President Biden is confident consensus can be reached over Sweden and Finland's prospective membership of Nato, after Turkey's President Erdogan said he would not approve their applications.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated the remarks on board Air Force One today, echoing similar comments made by Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The leaders of Finland and Sweden will visit the US President in Washington on Thursday to discuss their admission to the alliance, according to the White House.

For Finland and Sweden to join Nato, all 30 existing members must agree.

On Tuesday, a significant majority of Finland's members of parliament voted in favour of the country's proposal to apply for membership. Of the 200 eligible to vote, 188 threw their support behind the motion.

Russia's Ministry of Defence has released footage of Ukrainian troops being evacuated from the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol after spending weeks defending the besieged city's last holdout.

More than 260 Ukrainian fighters have now been taken to the Russian-controlled areas of Novoazovsk and Olenivka.

Image source, Russian Defence Ministry/Reuters

Image source, Russian Defence Ministry/Reuters

Image source, Russian Defence Ministry/EPA

Image source, Russian Defence Ministry/EPA

Image source, Dmytro Zhyvytsky/Reuters

More now on fighting in eastern Ukraine and Russian strikes have been reported in the city of Okhtyrka in the north-eastern Sumy region.

Regional Governor Dmytro Zhyvytsky said buildings including a kindergarten and a church were damaged.

The shelling of the region from Russian territory has been going on since this morning, he said on messaging app Telegram, external.

At least five people were injured, authorities say.

The Russian ministry of defence said its missiles had "destroyed enemy reserves" that were completing combat exercises at training centres in the Okhtyrka area.

Image source, Ochakovo

Russians are increasingly turning to domestic brands, amid an exodus of Western household names like Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Starbucks and Ikea.

Thirsty Russians are now being offered fizzy drink replacements for Coke, Fanta and Sprite – namely the Ochakovo beverage firm’s CoolCola, Fancy and Street.

But on its website Ochakovo avoids naming the Western counterparts – cola for example is just described as “a cult flavour”.

There is now a Kremlin-led drive to pump out Russian-made consumer goods, as wide-ranging sanctions imposed over the Ukraine war hit imports.

No doubt many Russians will hope the quality is better than that of Soviet substitutes during the Cold War, when the cash-strapped communist state boycotted most “capitalist” goods.

Ochakovo is a well-established firm famous for kvass – a traditional, mildly alcoholic Russian drink made from fermented bread.

Image source, Reuters

Germany will increase its military co-operation with Finland and Sweden, Chancellor Olaf Scholz says, adding that his country will push for a "very swift" ratification of their accession to Nato.

"We will intensify our military co-operation especially in the Baltic Sea region and through joint exercises," he says.

Speaking at a news conference with the prime minister of Liechtenstein, the German chancellor says he is confident that Turkey will support Finland and Sweden joining the alliance despite its initial objections.

Earlier, Scholz spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and, according to a spokesman for the chancellor, they agreed that a diplomatic negotiated settlement between Ukraine and Russia would require "an immediate end to hostilities on the part of Russia and a withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine".

Image source, EPA

The leaders of Finland and Sweden will visit US President Joe Biden on Thursday to discuss their Nato applications, according to a statement from the White House.

Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinistö will join Biden in Washington to talk about their decision to seek Nato membership.

They will also discuss "European security, as well as strengthening our close partnerships across a range of global issues and support for Ukraine," a White House spokesperson said.

• Are Sweden and Finland going from neutral to Nato?

Image source, EPA

President Putin has warned Europe will pay a high price for energy if the West imposes an embargo on Russian oil.

He said talk of a possible embargo had already prompted a rise in global oil prices.

Putin was speaking with Russian oil chiefs and government officials, in a televised address, about the impact of Western sanctions on the energy industry.

The Russian leader claimed the sanctions, which were introduced following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, had been established by the West for political reasons.

But he concluded it would be impossible for some European countries, which are heavily reliant on energy from Russia, to completely shun Russian oil.

Hugo Bachega
Reporting from Dnipro

Details of what will happen to the fighters evacuated from the Azovstal steelworks in the southern city of Mariupol are still not clear. In total, 264 troops were taken to Russian-controlled territory, including 53 injured men who were transported to a hospital.

Ukrainian officials have suggested a prisoner swap would take place, with the wounded exchanged when their condition stabilised. But there has been no official confirmation of those plans.

Anna, whose brother was inside the plant, told me she hoped those evacuated would not “stay in the enemy’s territory” for long. “There are many concerns about how they’ll be treated and whether they’ll manage to survive until a swap [happens],” she said.

“In 2014, fighters who were taken prisoners were swapped only after several years,” she said, referring to the year when conflict broke out in eastern Ukraine between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists.

Oksana, the wife of a fighter, said some families had received messages this morning from those inside the steelworks telling them the “situation was tense” and that they “wouldn’t have connection for a long time”.

“It’s very worrying for me and others that they were evacuated only to Russian-controlled territory,” she said. “It scares us a lot, because it’s not clear where they will be. We’re very, very worried about the things that can happen to them.”

The Ukrainian deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, said the authorities were working on the next stages of the operation to evacuate the fighters who are still in the plant. But, again, there are no details about how and when this is going to happen.

We reported earlier that the village of Desna, near Chernihiv, had been struck by Russia and an unknown number of people had died as a result.

Ukraine’s state emergency service has now confirmed the deaths of eight people and said 12 more were injured, Reuters reports.

Viacheslav Chaus, Chernihiv's governor, said this morning that Moscow had fired four missiles at around 05:00 local time. Two hit buildings in the small village, he added.

The BBC has not been able to independently verify these claims.

Image source, .

Image source, Reuters

The defenders of Mariupol "changed the course of the war" by holding out for 82 days, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak.

In televised comments, reported by Reuters, he says the defence of the port city had interrupted Russia's operation to capture territory in the east and south of the country.

He says talks over evacuating more people from the Azovstal steelworks, the last remaining Ukrainian held area of the city, were difficult but there was hope they would be successful.

Podolyak, one of the Ukrainian negotiators, says overall peace talks with Russia were effectively on "pause" and reiterated that Ukraine was not prepared to give away any territory.

But he added that "any war will all the same end at the negotiating table".

Back now to Mariupol's besieged Azovstal steel plant, from where hundreds of Ukrainian fighters have been taken to Russian-controlled territories.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the status of the evacuated troops and did not answer whether the Ukrainian soldiers would be treated as war criminals or as prisoners of war.

"[President Vladimir] Putin has guaranteed that they will be treated in line with the relevant international laws," he said, refusing to provide any further details on what will happen to the evacuated troops.

Speaking in the Russian State Duma (parliament), Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said those evacuated should not be subject to exchange and should instead be brought to justice.

More than 260 fighters left the Azovstal steelworks late last night and were taken to surrounding areas held by Russian-backed rebels - with 53 injured fighters taken to Novoazovsk and 211 people taken to Olenivka, north of the port city.

Image source, .

Ukraine's deputy prime minister said earlier that Ukraine is working on the next steps of the evacuation and hopes to swap the Ukrainian defenders for Russian prisoners of war it holds.

Image source, EPA

The Finnish president, who is visiting Stockholm, says he is sure Finland and Sweden can reach an agreement with Turkey over its objections to them joining the alliance.

According to Reuters, Sauli Niinisto told Sweden's parliament: "I am sure that, with the help of constructive discussions, we will solve the situation."

• What is Nato and how can Finland and Sweden join?

Meanwhile Russia's foreign ministry has said two staff members at Finland's Moscow embassy will have to leave the country in response to a similar move in Helsinki.

Finland's state-owned energy provider Gasum has said it anticipates gas flows from Russia could be halted as it takes Russia's Gazprom Export to arbitration proceedings over its demand to be paid in roubles.

Image source, Reuters

Finland and Sweden joining Nato would probably make "not much difference", according to Russia’s foreign minister.

Speaking at a public lecture in Moscow, Sergei Lavrov says both countries “have been participating in Nato military exercises for many years," in remarks quoted by the Ria Novosti news agency.

But he reiterated Moscow's stance that his country's response to Sweden and Finland's decision to apply for membership of the military alliance will depend on what forces Nato deploys on their territory.

Meanwhile Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said countries like the UK and US whose military advisers, he says, “tell armed Ukrainian nationalists what to do, [and] who give them intelligence information,” should be considered more than just "unfriendly".

“We put it mildly by calling them unfriendly states. I would now say that these are already hostile states because what they are doing is war," Peskov added.

Russia has an official list of "unfriendly" states, largely consisting of Nato members, as well as non-member countries such as Australia and Japan which have also imposed sanctions on Russia.

Rob Cameron
BBC Prague Correspondent

Image source, UK Government

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky has criticised the Hungarian government over its attitude to Russia, in a tweet following Viktor Orban being sworn in as prime minister on Monday.

Mr Lipavsky said Hungary's decision not to support sanctions targeting Russian energy exports was "unacceptable", adding that Europe needed to be more united than ever.

The Czech Republic - along with Hungary, Poland and Slovakia - belongs to the so-called "Visegrad Four" group of central European countries, formed to defend common interests in the EU.

However, Hungary's attitude to implementing sanctions against Russia and its refusal to arm Ukraine is starkly at odds with fellow Visegrad members, and the viability of the group appears increasingly uncertain.

A number of Ukrainians have been injured, and some are presumed dead, after Russia launched a missile strike on the village of Desna near Chernihiv, the city's governor has said.

In a video posted to Facebook, Viacheslav Chaus claimed Russia launched four missiles at around 05:00 local time. “Preliminarily, we have dead and many wounded,” he said.

Two of the missiles hit buildings in the village, Chaus went on, without clarifying whether these were residential or industrial sites.

Rescue teams and law enforcement officers are working to recover the bodies of those caught up in the attack, he added.

The BBC has been unable to independently verify these claims.

Desna, a small town, is home to the Ukrainian military's 169th Training Centre.

Image source, .

Image source, Reuters

Just over a month after Russian forces withdrew from Bucha, near Kyiv, new pictures show destroyed Russian tanks and military vehicles dumped in the Ukrainian town.

Russian troops pulled out of the area in April to regroup and bolster its forces in the east of Ukraine.

The bodies of at least 500 people have been found since the Russians left Bucha. Moscow has denied any involvement in the atrocities.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

If you're just joining us, here's a look at the main developments so far today:

• Ukraine is working on the "next stages" of the evacuation of fighters from the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, its deputy prime minister said on the Telegram messaging service
• Iryna Vereshchuk said 52 severely wounded servicemen were evacuated to a hospital in the Russian-controlled town of Novoazovsk
• More than 200 others were taken to the town of Olenivka, which is controlled by Russian-backed separatists
• Western military sources say Russian President Vladimir Putin is now directly involved in the day-to-day running of the war, taking decisions normally made by more junior officers
• Ukraine's military says Russia is "continuing its offensive" in the east of the country, adding "the enemy focused its main efforts on Donetsk"
• The regional governor of Lviv says railway facilities have been hit by a Russian cruise missile

Image source, Getty Images

Moscow's Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko has said there are currently no negotiations taking place between Russia and Ukraine, according to the Interfax news agency.

"No, the negotiations are not continuing. Ukraine has practically withdrawn from the negotiating process," the foreign minister told journalists in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.

Rudenko said Kyiv has withdrawn from diplomatic talks as he reiterated that negotiations are not happening "in any form".

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky previously told the BBC's Frank Gardner that he understands the need for dialogue with Russia - and that from their side, "not all the diplomatic bridges have been burnt".