Summary

  • World leaders from the Nato defence alliance declare Russia a "direct threat" to their security at a summit in Madrid

  • Ukraine can count on the alliance "for as long as it takes", Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg says

  • Finland and Sweden will be invited to join and high-alert troops will be increased to 300,000 by next year, he says

  • The UK makes more troops available for Nato's eastern flank and Boris Johnson urges members to boost defence spending

  • Meanwhile, at least three people have died in a Russian missile strike on a residential building in the southern city of Mykolaiv

  • And Ukraine's president has called on the UN to recognise Russia as a terrorist state after Monday's strike on a shopping centre in Kremenchuk killed 18

Live Reporting

Edited by Chris Giles

  1. The morning after the day before in Kremenchuk...

    Sophie Williams
    Reporting from Kremenchuk

    A rescuer works at a site of a shopping mall hit by a Russian missile strike in Kremenchuk, UkraineReuters

    Here in Kremenchuk, the town is waking up to the sheer devastation after a missile struck a shopping mall.

    Some 1,000 people have been working at the site overnight.

    As we've reported, at least 18 people have now been confirmed dead and 59 are injured. But work to search the rubble continues.

    Rescue workers at a site of the shopping mall hit by a Russian missile strike in Kremenchuk, UkraineReuters
    Rescue workers at a site of a shopping mall hit by a Russian missile strike in Kremenchuk, UkraineReuters

  2. Rescue mission turns to recovery of bodies

    Nick Beake
    Reporting from Kremenchuk

    Officials in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk say at least 18 people were killed in the missile strike at the shopping centre.

    Under the glare of powerful lights, firefighters worked alongside diggers through the night to try to find survivors. That hope has all but gone.

    Much of the roof of the large shopping complex has imploded, leaving a charred and twisted shell. Today’s work will inevitably move from a rescue operation to recovery of bodies.

    Dozens of survivors are being treated in a nearby hospital. The Ukrainian Air Force command claims this was the work of Kh-22 missiles launched from long-range bomber aircrafts.

    Government officials at the site say the attack makes a mockery of President Putin’s claim that Russia is using high precision weapons to hit military targets. Kremenchuk was hit by missiles in April and 10 days ago when a nearby oil refinery was struck. But this attack on afternoon shoppers is incomparable.

  3. Russia has become world's 'largest terrorist group' - Zelensky

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses G7 leaders meeting in Germany via video linkEPA

    Let's hear what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had to say about the shopping centre blast in his daily address last night.

    The wartime leader called on the international community to stop "Russian terror", saying that the missile strikes in Ukraine's Kremenchuk made Vladimir Putin's country "the largest terrorist organisation in the world".

    So far, 18 people are thought to have been killed and dozens more injured but Zelensky warned there could be more. "We are [still] establishing the number of people under the rubble," he said.

    Turning to the meeting of the G7 leaders that has been taking place, he said there had been "an important result agreed":

    The most powerful democracies in the world will support our state as long as necessary for our victory. Ukraine will not be broken! Never.

  4. Death toll in shopping centre attack rises to 18

    The State Emergency Service of Ukraine said overnight that 18 people are now confirmed dead - following Monday's missile strike on a shopping centre in Kremenchuk. The Head of Poltava regional military administration Dmytro Lunin also confirmed this number. It’s not a final figure however as rescue work is continuing at the site.Local authorities say 440 people from emergency services are working on location, including 14 psychologists brought in to support those affected.

    Around 1,000 people were believed to be in the shopping centre at the time of the Russian strike.

    BBC graphic about Kremenchuk.

  5. What's been happening in Ukraine?

    Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine.

    Here are the latest developments following yesterday's Russian missile strike on a busy shopping centre in eastern Ukraine:

    • Eighteen people are now known to have been killed in the strike in the city of Kremenchuk
    • Rescuers have been searching for survivors throughout the night
    • President Zelensky of Ukraine has described the strike on the centre as an act of terror
    • Leaders of the G7 nations meeting in Germany called it a war crime
    • Civilians were also killed in a separate attack in the eastern city of Lysychansk, which Russian forces are attempting to seize
    • Several people died in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv after Russian shelling there on Monday
    • After the G7 meeting concludes today, Western leaders will gather for Nato's annual meeting in Madrid
    • They are due to approve various measures in response to the war in Ukraine, including a huge increase in Nato's rapid response force