Key points
- Big picture: What you need to know this week
- Zelenskyy warns Russian troops preparing to intensify attacks on second front
- Number killed rising after Russian attack on DIY store kills more than 40 people| 16 confirmed dead
- Ukrainian boy, 13, takes DNA test to identify father's body
- Eyewitness:Russia producing shells three times faster than Ukraine's allies
- Live reporting by Michael Drummond and (earlier)Brad Young
Military analyst talks about National Service
Is National Service a good idea?
Rishi Sunak has talked a lot this week about security in Europe and the need to invest in defence - and then he announced that he would bring back National Service.
Our military analyst Sean Bell broke down the announcement on Sky News earlier...
Can Zelenskyy's TV charisma still move mountains?
By John Sparks, international correspondent
If the war in Ukraine was fought in the media alone, the Russians would have been repelled months, or even years, ago.
While the Kremlin funds "debate shows" with far-right nationalists spouting historical theories from the 19th century, the Ukrainians fight their corner with slickly-produced content highlighting every aspect of their defence.
Want to see the Ukrainians blowing up Russian tanks? That will be on X.
The petition to send clapped out cars in London to the Ukrainian military? Head to "Insta".
The passionate address where President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks from a burnt-out book-making factory, pleading with Joe Biden and Xi Jinping to turn up at a peace summit?
That dropped this morning.
Read more:
Germany's Scholz reiterates opposition to use of German weapons inside Russia
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeated his view that weapons donated to Ukraine should not be used to strike targets inside Russia.
There are "clear rules for German arms deliveries that have been agreed with Ukraine and that work," he said in Berlin earlier, according toTagesschau television.
"That is my theory anyway," he said, explaining that the aim of his Ukraine policy is to "prevent this from becoming a really big war".
German arms deliveries to Ukraine come with the condition that the weapons not be used on Russian territory - similar to donations by many other NATO countries.
But - as we have discussed on this blog today - there is increasing discussion in the West about whether this is a sustainable policy.
Anton Hofreiter, from the rival Green Party, called at the weekend for Ukraine to be permitted to hit Russian territory with Western weapons.
Girl, 12, among Kharkiv dead
A 12-year-old girl is among those killed in the strike on the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.
In an update this afternoon, Ukraine's ambassador to the US said the rescue operation is still ongoing.
Oksana Markarova said 16 people were killed including the girl and that 44 people were wounded.
She said on X: "Just yesterday I saw texts from 20 year old young woman who was looking for her mom and 12-year-old sister as their phones went silent.
"Do not be silent. Help us stop Russia!"
Zelenskyy: We do not want UN charter to be burnt
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has directly called on his US and Chinese counterparts to join his latest summit for peace in Ukraine.
"To president Biden, the leader of the United States, and to president Xi, the leader of China, we do not want the UN charter to be burned.
"Please show your leadership in advancing the peace."
Ukrainian boy, 13, takes DNA test to identify father's body
A 13-year-old boy was pictured in the aftermath of the deadly strike on Kharkiv that killed at least 16 people.
Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun shared the image, saying the boy was having to give a DNA sample in order to identify the body of his father, who died in the strike.
"Sometimes I think I cannot hate more. And then I do," Ms Sovsun said on X alongside the picture.
Ukrainian troops forced to train without firing
By Deborah Haynes, security and defence editor
Russia is producing artillery shells around three times faster than Ukraine's Western allies and for about a quarter of the cost, according to an analysis shared with Sky News.
The war has been described from the start as a "battle of fires" because of the volume of artillery rounds used.
Ukraine's allies have sought to ramp up production, but their ability still lags behind Moscow's.
As a result, Ukrainian soldiers on the frontline say for every one round they fire against Russian positions, the invading troops can launch around five shells back.
Battling against the odds, the Ukrainians say they have become skilled at trying to make every round count.
Read more:
Zelenskyy: Let us strike targets inside Russia
In the aftermath of the deadly strike on the city of Kharkiv, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has renewed his call for Western countries to allow Ukraine to use donated weapons against targets in Russia.
The US and other NATO countries have thus far resisted Ukrainian requests to use their donated weapons outside of Ukraine's borders.
They fear escalation with Moscow, but the consequences of the policy - Ukraine says - were clear when Russian troops were able to mass across the border from Kharkiv.
Speaking on X this afternoon, President Zelenskyy said: "The world has the means to counter Russian terror, and we in Ukraine need this assistance.
"Timely and sufficient support from partners. Steady and unwavering support for our warriors.
"Additional modern air defence systems, particularly Patriots, and the ability to destroy Russian terrorists so that they cannot approach our borders."
Russian casualties have passed 500,000, Ukraine says
The number of Russian casualties since the beginning of the full-scale invasion has passed half a million, Ukraine says.
More than 1,000 more were either killed or wounded in the last 24 hours.
While other Western estimates on Russian losses differ from Ukraine's, it is nonetheless a sign of the staggering human cost of the war for Moscow.
Russia does not routinely publish numbers of casualties or losses of equipment. Ukraine provides some figures but it does so infrequently.
In February, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that 31,000 of his troops had been killed in two years of war.
Sweden allowing Ukraine to strike targets in Russia using its weapons
As Ukraine battles to deter Russia's offensive around Kharkiv, the debate around restrictions on the use of weapons donated by NATO countries continues.
The US is coming under increasing pressure to drop its ban on Ukraine using its weapons to hit targets inside Russia.
President Joe Biden and co have been worried that allowing Ukraine to do so would be seen as escalation by Moscow.
Ukraine was forced to watch as Russian troops amassed across the border near Kharkiv, unable to bring its full weaponry to bear.
With the debate in full swing - and the US reportedly considering a change - Sweden has confirmed that Ukraine can use its weapons against targets in Russia.
Defence minister Pal Jonson told Swedish newspaper Hallandsposten that no such rule applied to his country's weapons.
He said: "Ukraine is exposed to an unprovoked and illegal war of aggression by Russia.
"According to international law, Ukraine has the right to defend itself by means of hostilities aimed at the territory of the adversary as long as the hostilities comply with the laws of war.
"Sweden stands behind international law and Ukraine's right to defend itself."
