Ukraine war LIVE as Russia announces temporary ceasefire in two areas

The Russian military will observe a ceasefire in two areas of Ukraine starting on Saturday to allow civilians to evacuate, according to state media reports.

The Russian defence ministry said in a statement carried by the RIA Novosti and Tass agencies it has agreed on evacuation routes with Ukrainian forces to allow civilians to leave the strategic port of Mariupol in the south-east and the eastern town of Volnovakha.

There was no immediate confirmation from Ukrainian forces, and it is not immediately clear how long the evacuation routes would remain open. Reuters are reporting that Russian forces will stop firing at 10am Moscow time.

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It comes as the Russian army continued its march into Ukraine on Friday, with dozens more killed in cities across the country and several dead at a nuclear power plant after Putin's forces bombed it.

And in a bitter and emotional speech on Friday evening, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticised Nato for refusing to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, saying it will fully untie Russia’s hands as it escalates its attack from the air.

“All the people who die from this day forward will also die because of you, because of your weakness, because of your lack of unity,” he said in a night-time address.

“The alliance has given the green light to the bombing of Ukrainian cities and villages by refusing to create a no-fly zone.”

Nato refused to impose a no-fly zone, warning that to do so could provoke widespread war in Europe with nuclear-armed Russia.

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