The images show the convoy moving through the town of Velykyi Burluk, near Kharkiv, on Friday (Picture: Maxar Technologies / EPA)
Chilling pictures show hundreds of Russian armoured vehicles travelling to eastern Ukraine preparing for a huge battle.
Satellite imagery firm Maxar Technologies shared the images yesterday, which show the convoy moving through the town of Velykyi Burluk, near Kharkiv, on Friday.
Tens of thousands of troops are heading towards the areas of Luhansk and Donetsk – collectively knows as the Donbas – in eastern Ukraine.
The column of trucks stretches back for an estimated eight miles and includes many vehicles towing artillery.
Decisive conflicts are expected there in the coming days, with Russian commanders reportedly thinking their best chance of success lies in the East.
Soldiers have retreated from other areas in Ukraine, including around the capital of Kyiv, to focus on the Donbas.
Moscow is looking for a victory so it can justify its ‘special military operation’, which so far has failed to capture any major cities.
But Ukrainian forces say they are prepared to push back Russian troops.
Tens of thousands of Russian troops are heading towards the areas of Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, collectively knows as the Donbas (Picture: Maxar Technologies / EPA)
The column of trucks stretches back for an estimated eight miles and includes many vehicles towing artillery (Picture: Maxar Technologies / AP)
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak said last night: ‘Ukraine is ready for big battles.
‘Ukraine must win them, including the Donbas. And once that happens, Ukraine will have a more powerful negotiating positions.’
He added he expects the fighting to continue for a further three weeks, then predicts presidents Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin will meet to negotiate a settlement.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last week: ‘Russia has tried to subjugate the whole of Ukraine, and it has failed.
‘Now it will attempt to take parts of the country under its rule. It may succeed in taking some territory through shear force and brutality.
‘But no matter what happens over the coming weeks, it is clear that Russia will never be welcomed by the Ukrainian people.
‘Instead, its gains will be temporary as the brave Ukrainian people resist Russian occupation and carry on the fight for an independent sovereign nation that they so richly deserve.’
Shahbaz Sharif is the new prime minister of Pakistan, replacing the ousted Imran Khan.
He was elected with 174 votes in favour after more than 100 politicians from Mr Khan's party walked out the national assembly in protest.
Mr Shahbaz, 70, is the younger brother of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif, and led the bid by opposition parties to remove Mr Khan.
Mr Khan, the cricket star turned politician became the first Pakistani prime minister to be ousted by a no-confidence vote in the early hours of Sunday.
Image:Imran Khan has accused critics of colluding with the US to unseat him
He had been in office since 2018 but opponents blamed him for failing to revive the economy and tackle corruption.
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Mr Khan has accused critics of colluding with the US to unseat him but has provided no evidence, and urged people to take to the streets in protest.
Thousands of his supporters demonstrated until the early hours of Monday in cities such as Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar. They blocked roads and shouted slogans against rival parties and the US government.
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Hundreds also gathered outside the London home of Nawaz Sharif on Sunday.
Image:Khan's supporters rallied in Karachi on Sunday
After losing the vote, Mr Khan tweeted on Sunday: "Pakistan became an independent state in 1947; but the freedom struggle begins again today against a foreign conspiracy of regime change.
"It is always the people of the country who defend their sovereignty and democracy."
Shahbaz Sharif submitted his nomination to be prime minister on Sunday, a move endorsed by other opposition parties.
But Mr Khan's party also nominated the former foreign minister, saying their members would resign en masse should he lose, potentially triggering by-elections.
Mr Khan had clung on for almost a week after a united opposition to remove him saw a key coalition partner and party allies jump ship.
He managed to avoid an initial no-confidence vote by dissolving parliament and calling elections. However, the supreme court ruled it was illegal.
Image:Mr Sharif pictured arriving at parliament in Islamabad, where he was later declared PM
Shabaz Sharif will have a small majority of 174, enough to pass laws in the 342-seat assembly.
He has served three times as chief minister of Pakistan's largest province, Punjab, home to 60% of the country's population.
His brother's last spell in office ended in 2017 when he was barred from office following financial details in the Panama Papers.
He went abroad for medical treatment after serving just a few months of a 10-year sentence for corruption, while Shabaz became leader of the PML-N party.
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Emmanuel Macron has won the first round of the French election and far-right rival Marine Le Pen will fight him for the presidency for a second time.
"Make no mistake, nothing is decided," he told cheering supporters.
In the end, he won a convincing first-round victory, but opinion polls suggest the run-off could be much closer.
Ms Le Pen called on every non-Macron voter to join her and "put France back in order".
With 97% of results counted, Emmanuel Macron had 27.6% of the vote, Marine Le Pen 23.41% and Jean-Luc Mélenchon 21.95%.
Kingmaker on far left
Veteran far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon polled even better than five years ago and now has the unlikely role of kingmaker.
"You must not give a single vote to Marine Le Pen," he warned his supporters, but unlike other candidates, he pointedly did not back the president instead. Later in the evening, Mélenchon activists gathered outside his campaign HQ thinking he might even come second, but it was not to be.
Making up more than a fifth of the vote, Mélenchon voters could decide the final round of this election, yet many of them may just sit the second round out and abstain.
Twelve candidates were in the running, but these were the only three who polled more than 10%. Many voters appeared to embrace the idea of tactical or "useful" voting, deciding that the other nine candidates had no hope of making the run-off.
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Several of the nine had little chance anyway, but the 2022 presidential election will be partly remembered for the disaster that befell the two old parties that used to run France, the Republicans and Socialists. They sank almost without trace, with Socialist Anne Hidalgo falling below 2%.
It was only a few months ago that Valérie Pécresse was still in the race for the right-wing Republicans. She performed so badly, her party could not even scrape the 5% needed to claim its election costs.
This is potentially terrible news for a party already tearing itself apart. Parties that fail to reach 5% only get €800,000 (£670,000) of their campaign funding covered by the state, and the Republicans will have paid out far more than that.
Run-off campaign starts now
A renewed battle for votes is under way. Marine Le Pen can count on supporters of Eric Zemmour, whose more hardline nationalism won him fourth place and 7%. Nationalist Nicolas Dupont-Aignan has also backed her. She can already count on an impressive 33% of the entire vote.
Mr Macron's team is planning a series of big rallies and major TV appearances. Most of the other candidates on the left have backed him, as has Valérie Pécresse, but one-time Socialist candidate Ségolène Royal said the president now had to "earn" victory.
Ifop pollster François Dabi said his company's 51%-49% estimate for the run-off was the closest they had ever predicted. An Elabe poll put the gap at 52%-48% and an Ipsos poll suggested it was wider still.
Addressing his supporters, Mr Macron looked a relieved man and he promised to work harder than in the first part of the campaign. He had only started campaigning eight days before the vote, his mind more focused on Russia's war in Ukraine.
"When the extreme right in all its forms represents so much of our country," he said, "we cannot feel that things are going well."
He addressed Le Pen voters too: "I want to convince them in the next few days that our project answers solidly to their fears and challenges of our time."
Ms Le Pen said it was time for a "great changeover", with a fundamental choice on 24 April of two opposite views: "Either division and disorder, or a union of the French people around guaranteed social justice."
She has built her campaign around the cost-of-living crunch facing much of Europe, promising to cut taxes and waive income tax for under-30s. There has been less emphasis on nationalism, but she wants a referendum on restricting immigration, radical change to the EU and a ban on the Islamic hijab in public areas.
The campaign only sparked into life in the final fortnight, first because of the Covid pandemic and then the Russian war. But in the end, the spring sunshine meant turnout was not as low as feared, at almost 75%.
One in four young voters backed the president, although more than one in three 18-24 year-olds opted for Jean-Luc Mélenchon, according to Elabe pollsters.
Marine Le Pen performed best among 35-64 year-olds, while the president was favoured by over-65s.
It was already clear from Mr Macron's speech that he planned to target Ms Le Pen's close links with the Kremlin. Although she has condemned Vladimir Putin's war, she visited him before the previous election in 2017 and her party took out a Russian loan.
He wanted a France that made alliances with great democracies to defend itself, he said, not a state that would leave Europe and have only populists and xenophobes for allies.
Those queueing in the sun in Perpignan for Marine Le Pen’s last rally before today’s presidential election agreed on one thing: France has lost its way. They just could not decide when this began — was it during the past five years under Emmanuel Macron or is the malaise far more deeply rooted?
For Thierry Vidal, 54, who works for the council and takes home just €1,300 (£1,086) a month, day-to-day reality makes him angry. “Filling up my trolley at the supermarket costs me €200. Not long ago, it used to be half that,” he complained. “But my wages don’t go up. Is that normal?” Jeannette, 63, still hesitating between Le Pen and Éric Zemmour, who has outflanked her on the right, is more worried
President Zelenskyy has demanded a "firm global response" as he blamed Russia for an attack near a rail station that killed at least 50 people - with the UK set to provide fresh military aid.
Britain will send armoured vehicles to Ukraine for the first time as part of a new £100m package, as Mr Zelenskyy warned against "any delay" in offering further weapons.
Speaking in his nightly video after what he called a "war crime" near Kramatorsk station, he said a "delay in providing weapons to Ukraine, any refusals, can only mean the politicians in question want to help the Russian leadership more than us".
UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told Sky News the Ukrainian military would get Mastiff heavily armoured patrol vehicles, which weigh 23 tonnes and carry eight troops and two crew.
It is understood they will be stripped of sensitive equipment and could help mount offensive operations close to Russian lines.
The Mastiff was designed to withstand Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) during the Afghan war.
Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles, 800 anti-tank missiles, helmets, and night vision goggles will be included in the consignment, in addition to 200,000 items already distributed.
Key developments:
• Ammo depot destroyed at air base in central Ukraine, says Russia's Interfax news agency • General responsible for atrocities in Syria reportedly now in charge of Ukraine invasion. • Curfew in Black Sea port of Odesa from Saturday night until Monday amid fears of attack • More than 6,600 people evacuated through humanitarian corridors on Friday • EU promises to "accelerate" Ukraine's membership • Russia has lost 19,000 troops, Ukraine claims, after Kremlin admits 'significant' losses
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9:48
Deadly airstrike in Kramatorsk
Defence secretary says support will continue
Speaking at a NATO ceremony in Romania, Mr Wallace refused to be drawn on whether the UK would commit anti-ship missiles such as the Harpoon, as requested by President Zelenskyy.
Mr Zelenskyy says they will help prevent Russia from consolidating its control of Ukraine's Black Sea coast.
Image:Mastiffs in Afghanistan, during a 2010 visit by David Cameron
Mr Wallace said: "I won't discuss different types of weapons systems. I don't want to flag to Russians any change until they have happened."
He added: "Our commitment is to support Ukraine to make sure they have as much help as possible to defend themselves. And if the tactics of the Russians change, what we give them will change as well."
Mr Peskov was accused of living in a "parallel universe" and peddling a "catalogue of lies" when he denied Russians had committed war crimes in Bucha.
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1:31
'Russia's fundamental weakness'
Station attack is 'evil that has no limits'
The missile strike near Kramatorsk station has raised more claims of war crimes and was described by Ukraine's president as an act of "evil that has no limits".
Five children were among the at least 50 people killed. Up to 4,000 people, thought to be largely women and children, were at the station when the blast hit.
Image:The attack on Kramatorsk railway station was called a war crime by Ukraine's president
Sky's John Sparks, reporting from the scene, said that emblazoned on the side of the mangled missile was за детей, which translates from Russian as for - or on behalf of - the children.
The station had been packed as people tried to flee Ukraine, but the Russian defence ministry denied targeting the station.
Mr Peskov claimed that Russian armed forces had no missions scheduled for Kramatorsk.
"Like the massacres in Bucha, like many other Russian war crimes, the missile attack on Kramatorsk should be one of the charges at the tribunal that must be held," said President Zelenskyy on Friday night.
Sky News military analyst Professor Michael Clarke said pictures of the almost intact missile laying outside the town indicate it is a cluster bomb - illegal for use on civilian targets.
General responsible for Syria atrocities 'now in charge'
Ukraine's railway operator said on Saturday that services out of Kramatorsk were still disrupted but that evacuations would continue at other stations in the country's east.
The start to the weekend also saw Russia claim to have destroyed an ammunition depot at the Myrhorod Air Base in central Ukraine, according to the country's Interfax news agency.
Image:Alexander Dvornikov is said to have been put in charge of Russia's invasion. Pic: AP
The Black Sea port of Odesa also imposed a curfew from Saturday night until Monday morning amid fears of an attack on the city.
There are also unconfirmed reports that Alexander Dvornikov, a Russian general responsible for atrocities in Syria, has been put in charge of the Ukraine invasion.
Speaking to Sky News, former UK ambassador to Russia Sir Roderic Lyne appeared to confirm the news.
"They've appointed a new general with a pretty savage track record in Syria to try to at least gain some territory in Donetsk that Putin could present as a victory," he said.
Russian forces abandon tanks in 'hasty' withdrawal
As Russia withdraws forces from northern Ukraine, one Western official said the abandoned tanks, vehicles, and artillery could indicate "the collapse of morale and the collapse of the will to fight".
The official told reporters on Wednesday: "We can confirm that there are no longer units in northern Ukraine.
"It has been a pretty hasty withdrawal by Russian forces and there's a lot of Russian equipment which has been abandoned in that hasty withdrawal and that's only going to exacerbate the challenge they have in terms of the refurbishment and reconstitution of their forces as they remove them both into Belarus and into Russia."
'Little point' negotiating with Russia, says PM
Following talks in Downing Street with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Boris Johnson said he saw little prospect of success negotiating with Mr Putin directly - although he did not criticise those, such as the French president, who continue to do so.
"Negotiating with Putin does not seem to me to be full of promise. I don't feel that he can be trusted," he said.
"That is not to say I don't admire the efforts of people who try to find a way through. But my own view is that I am deeply, deeply sceptical and, I'm afraid, cynical now about his assurances."
Meanwhile, Home Secretary Priti Patel apologised after being criticised for delays in accepting refugees as the latest figures show only around 12,000 Ukrainians have arrived in the UK, despite 40,900 visas being granted.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan is facing a no-confidence vote in parliament this morning, one he is expected to lose.
It comes a day after Pakistan's Supreme Court blocked his bid to stay in power, ruling that his move to dissolve parliament and call elections early was illegal.
This set the stage for today's vote, expected at 6.30am UK time, with opposition politicians saying they have the 172 votes in the 342-seat assembly needed to unseat Mr Khan.
But theformer cricket star turned conservative Islamic politician is still standing firm, vowing on Friday that he "will not accept an imposed government".
Image:Ppposition party leaders Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, left, Shahbaz Sharif, centre, and Asadur Rehman have called the vote
'As good as gone'
Mr Khan surged to power in 2018, but recently lost his parliamentary majority, and a prominent newspaper recently described him "as good as gone".
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The embattled prime minister has urged his opponents to take to the streets in support.
"All of you will have to come out on Sunday after evening prayer to protest, to peacefully protest … I again say that should never indulge in violence," he said. "It should be a peaceful protest."
The vote was tabled over what the opposition has called the prime minister's economic and political mismanagement, and they blame him for failing to revive the economy and tackle corruption.
No prime minister has finished a full five-year term since independence from Britain in 1947.
Accusations of opposition colluding with US
Mr Khan has accused his opponents of colluding with the US to remove him, but has provided no evidence.
He said he wants the Supreme Court to investigate communications between a senior US diplomat, whom he has not named, and Pakistani diplomats, which he claims show evidence of collusion.
He alleges the US government wants him gone because of his foreign policy choices in favour of Russia and China. He visited Moscow on 24 February and held talks with Vladimir Putin - the same day tanks rolled into Ukraine.
The US state department has denied any involvement, with spokeswoman Jalina Porter telling reporters on Friday that there was "absolutely no truth to these allegations".
Image:The latest development threaten fresh political instability. Pic: AP
What could happen next?
If the opposition wins the vote, it is up to parliament to choose a new head of government, possibly the leader of the opposition, the brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif.
He would hold office until October 2023, when a new election is scheduled to be held.
Nawaz Sharif was disqualified from holding office after he was convicted of corruption and named in the so-called Panama Papers.
If the opposition are unsuccessful, early elections would be called.
French voters will go to the polls in the first round of France's 2022 presidential elections on Sunday.
Although President Emmanuel Macron is still leading the polls, his main rival Marine Le Pen has climbed up the ratings and now poses a veritable challenge to his hopes of a second term in the Elysee.
If Ms Le Pen is elected, her far-right policies would mean huge changes for France and for the rest of Europe.
Sky News looks at how the French president is elected and how this year's vote is shaping up.
How does it work?
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France has a semi-presidential system, which means it has both a president and a prime minister.
But compared to other similar ones around the world, the French president has considerably wide-ranging powers.
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They are directly elected, which means people vote for the candidate themselves - not their party. Unlike in the UK, where the leader of the party with the most votes becomes prime minister.
The presidential vote is divided into two rounds - taking place this year on 10 and 24 April.
Any candidate with the backing of 500 sponsors can run in the first round.
If one person gets more than 50% of the vote, they win outright, but this hasn't happened since Charles de Gaulle's re-election in 1965.
Otherwise, only the top two candidates make it through to the second round.
Image:There are 577 MPs or deputes in France's National Assembly. File pic
Whoever wins that round will become president - this year on 13 May - for a five-year term.
A similar two-round vote will then take place for the MPs - or deputes - in the National Assembly, France's lower house of parliament.
Because the two votes run on the same five-year cycle, the president's party almost always wins the majority of the 577 seats in the National Assembly as well.
But until 2002 the cycles were slightly different, which meant the president's party sometimes failed to security a majority, significantly reducing his power.
The new president is also tasked with electing a prime minister, to be in charge of the government, while they preside over the executive.
Who is running?
There are 12 candidates in the first round of this year's election, ranging from the far-right to the far-left.
Although Mr Macron has dominated the opinion polls in the years since his election in 2017, in recent weeks, his main rival Ms Le Pen has closed the gap.
Emmanuel Macron
Elected at just 39, Emmanuel Macron is the youngest French president in history.
Previously a member of the Socialist Party, the former investment banker created his own centrist party La Republique En Marche (France on the Move) in 2016.
With En Marche's majority in the National Assembly, Mr Macron's pro-business policies have seen an overhaul of France's staunchly-protected labour code, nationalised railways and pension system.
This has seen him come up against major opposition from the Yellow Vests - or Gilets Jaunes - who have staged regular protests throughout his presidency.
He has also had to navigate the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic as well as, more recently, the war in Ukraine.
Although he has played a negotiating role between the two sides, some have criticised him for keeping an open dialogue with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
Marine Le Pen
Marine Le Pen, 53, was the runner-up in the 2017 elections. This will be her third attempt at the presidency.
A key far-right figure, she is the daughter of the Jean-Marie Le Pen, who founded France's National Front and is notorious for his racist, anti-immigrant views.
She took over from her father as leader in 2011 and, in an attempt to distance herself from his reputation, banished him from the party in 2015.
After losing out to Mr Macron in 2017, she rebranded the National Front to National Rally.
Although anti-immigration by nature and a previous supporter of Mr Putin, Ms Le Pen has been quick to announce her support for Ukrainian refugees.
She has also focused heavily on the cost of living crisis, which many credit with her recent uptick in the polls.
Jean-Luc Melenchon
Leader of the far-left party La France Insoumise - France Unbowed - Jean-Luc Melenchon is the best hope of a left-wing candidate reaching the second round, currently polling third.
Although unlikely to beat Ms Le Pen, the 70-year-old is a veteran of French politics and known for his divisive rhetoric.
His policies include weaning France off of nuclear energy, increasing the minimum wage and reducing presidential powers.
Eric Zemmour
Eric Zemmour is another far-right candidate running this year.
A former columnist and TV pundit with convictions for inciting racial hatred, he is the more radical option to Ms Le Pen.
Vehemently anti-immigration and anti-Islam, the 63-year-old's pro-Russian views have also been a burden on him following the outbreak of war in Ukraine, with Ms Le Pen quick to disassociate herself with the Kremlin.
Valerie Pecresse
Right-wing candidate Valerie Pecresse already holds high political office as president of Paris's Ile de France region.
The 54-year-old is running for the Republicans - France's mainstream Conservative party.
Many of her policies are similar to Mr Macron's, which has meant she has struggled to differentiate herself and poll very highly.
Yannick Jadot
Among the left-wing candidates is Yannick Jadot, a former Greenpeace campaigner.
The 54-year-old has served as a Green member of the European Parliament, representing the West France constituency, since 2009.
Mr Jadot had been hoping to capitalise on the success the French Greens had in the local elections two years ago, but he looks unlikely to poll anywhere near the second round.
Anne Hidalgo
Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo is running for the French socialists.
Although popular in her current constituency, with the French left enjoying little success since Francois Hollande's epic fall in popularity, the 62-year-old is currently only polling in single digits.
Fabien Roussel
Current leader of the French communist party, Fabien Roussel, has been a member of the National Assembly since 2017.
The 52-year-old's policies include increasing taxes for big business and nationalising large banks and energy companies.
Philippe Poutou
A far-left candidate for the New Anti-Capitalist Party, Philippe Poutou is a former Ford factory worker who made headlines for insulting his fellow candidates in the 2017 first round and refusing to take part in a joint photo.
It is the 55-year-old's third attempt at the presidency.
Nathalie Arthaud
Secondary school teacher Nathalie Arthaud, 60, has also stood for the presidency three times since 2001.
Spokesperson for France's Workers' Struggle party, she advocates for large increases in the minimum wage and a ban on job cuts.
Nicolas Dupont-Aignan
The only sitting MP for the far-right Debout la France - Rise Up, France party, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan has previously served as the mayor of Paris suburb Yerres.
The 61-year-old's extreme policies on immigration have largely been drowned out by the more popular Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour.
Jean Lassalle
The founder of his own agricultural-focused party Resistons!, former shepherd Jean Lassalle has been an MP in the Pyrenees since 2002.
Passionate about rural issues, he is well known and liked by many, but his political career is almost certain to remain confined to his seat in the National Assembly.
