hello, i'm lauren taylor. let's start with these live pictures coming to us from paris. china's president, xijinping, has arrived there, and in the next few minutes he's due to meet president macron, and the president of the european commission. he will arrive in that courtyard. the meeting is expected to be dominated by discussions about the war in ukraine, and trade relations. president macron will try to persuade the chinese leader to use his influence in russia to push the kremlin towards ending its invasion. ursula von der leyen says she'll address the need forfair competition. joining me now is our paris correspondent, hugh schofield. and also martin yip from bbc chinese, whojoins us from hong kong. starting with you, you, tell us about the significance and why

present xijinping is in paris after five years of not being in europe —— president xijinping. the five years of not being in europe -- president xi jinping._ president xi jinping. the official reason given — president xi jinping. the official reason given is _ president xi jinping. the official reason given is it _ president xi jinping. the official reason given is it is _ president xi jinping. the official reason given is it is the - president xi jinping. the official reason given is it is the 60th i reason given is it is the 60th anniversary of the establishment of relations between france and the new china back in 1964, a very significant moment back then when charles de gaulle sorta broke the western front and up relations with communist china back then. the significance of that now is that as back then, the chinese were very happy with this notion that france would break ranks with the rest of the western world, that it would say that there was a third position, a third option, if you like, one of being in the west but also holding out a hand of friendship to the chinese. that's very much what the chinese. that's very much what the chinese would like to believe that present macron is doing now. president macron has spoken of europe and its role as a third, autonomous role in the geopolitical order. present xijinping

autonomous role in the geopolitical order. present xi jinping would autonomous role in the geopolitical order. present xijinping would like france to develop that and become this kind of other western partner in addition to the united states —— president xijinping. whether in addition to the united states —— president xi jinping. whether he will get what he wants is another matter because president macron has shown himself in the last few months, in his address at the sorbonne last weekend interview with the economist last week, and much more hardline figure towards china who he now accuses quite frequently of breaking trade rules and being a competitive threat to china and europe. here he is now, i can see that the honour guard is stood to attention and i suspect that president xijinping is due attention and i suspect that president xi jinping is due to arrive now. president xi jinping is due to arrive nova— president xi jinping is due to arrive now. president xi jinping is due to arrivenow. , ., ., ,, arrive now. just on that issue you were talking _ arrive now. just on that issue you were talking about, _ arrive now. just on that issue you were talking about, the _ arrive now. just on that issue you were talking about, the areas - arrive now. just on that issue you were talking about, the areas of. were talking about, the areas of tension they are navigating, they are quite significant, aren't they? they are. it is this issue of trade thatis they are. it is this issue of trade that is a big one. ursula von der leyen and macron are increasingly on the same kind of line on this. the europeans as a body are increasingly worried about chinese trade practices. china has become an exporter nation and the accusation

is that it is dumping a lot of its produce like electric cars on the european market. president macron referred to this in his speech last week. macron's answer is that we in europe also need to get tough. it is a chance for the new macron to address present xijinping, who talks very openly about defending european interests, uses the word protection, protecting european interests. talking tough with the chinese leader and we will have to see how they spun. there are scientologists who say the only way to talk to the chinese is to talk to. we will see. {lin to talk to the chinese is to talk to. we will see.— to talk to the chinese is to talk to. we will see. on the matter of the eur0pean. — to. we will see. on the matter of the european, they _ to. we will see. on the matter of the european, they are _ to. we will see. on the matter of the european, they are meeting. to. we will see. on the matter of. the european, they are meeting with ursula von der leyen and xijinping and macron. what macron has pushed for hasn't always necessarily been what europeans want, is it? at, for hasn't always necessarily been what europeans want, is it? a year auo what europeans want, is it? a year ago macron — what europeans want, is it? a year ago macron was — what europeans want, is it? a year ago macron was in _ what europeans want, is it? a year ago macron was in china _ what europeans want, is it? a year ago macron was in china with - what europeans want, is it? a year. ago macron was in china with ursula von der leyen and there it was very much bad cop good cop. ursula von der leyen was the bad cop talking very strongly about problems of

chinese dumping of cars and so on. i think maybe we should leave that now because i'm being drowned out. fanfare. there you have it, the handshake between the french president emanuel macron and chinese president xi

jinping for his first official visit to europe in five years. we know they are going to go in and have a meeting which is also with ursula von der leyen, the european commissioner, who we think might be at the top of the steps. she might be there to shake hand is as well. no, she appears to be inside. let's bring back in hugh schofield. it's quite a big moment for france to put on the full honours of a full state visit given there are tensions with china that are quite difficult and that also puts france at odds slightly with the us which is having difficulties with china.— difficulties with china. yeah, the 're difficulties with china. yeah, they're in — difficulties with china. yeah, they're in a _ difficulties with china. yeah, they're in a way, _ difficulties with china. yeah, they're in a way, as - difficulties with china. yeah, they're in a way, as i - difficulties with china. yeah, they're in a way, as i was - difficulties with china. yeah, - they're in a way, as i was saying, they're in a way, as i was saying, the europeans are in a way increasingly aligned with the united states on china. they have accused the europeans for being too soft on china, not waking up to the reality of china and that's what the europeans are doing. certainly macron last week in his speech and in his economist interview was quite

blatantly concerned about the rise of china and about europe's naivety and unwillingness to see the new china thought it was. there is, in a way, the possibility of an american — european alignment here and i think what president xi is trying to do is break that and he's doing it with traditional chinese diplomatic manners, coming here, being very, very fulsome in his praise for france and its historical importance and grandeurand france and its historical importance and grandeur and the role of charles de gaulle in recognising china back in 1964 and all this. this is the way they talk to the french, flattering france's sense of its own destiny. it talks to germany in a rather different way. to the germans, china talks as a purely commercial partner and promises all sorts of commercial deals if it toes the line, and for example, blocks the line, and for example, blocks the european investigations into dumping practices and so on. the

chinese interests, quite clearly, this is the big picture, is to split the europeans from each other and from europe and that is what is going on here. from europe and that is what is going on here-— from europe and that is what is auoin on here. 3 , going on here. let's bring in martin yi in going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong — going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong kong- _ going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong kong. tell— going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong kong. tell us _ going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong kong. tell us about - going on here. let's bring in martin yip in hong kong. tell us about the scale of the trade relation between europe and china and why china is quite keen to keep that established. well, as hugh hasjust mentioned about_ well, as hugh hasjust mentioned about the — well, as hugh hasjust mentioned about the dumping of electric cars, that is_ about the dumping of electric cars, that is one — about the dumping of electric cars, that is one of the key points between _ that is one of the key points between china and pretty much the whole _ between china and pretty much the whole europe economy, especially when _ whole europe economy, especially when the — whole europe economy, especially when the european union has now brought— when the european union has now brought in— when the european union has now brought in an investigation on whether— brought in an investigation on whether china is indeed doing that, if china _ whether china is indeed doing that, if china is— whether china is indeed doing that, if china is subsidising the electric car industry to sell cheap cars to eurone, — car industry to sell cheap cars to europe, and indeed you see all these brands _ europe, and indeed you see all these brands going into europe. and if we focus _ brands going into europe. and if we focus on _ brands going into europe. and if we focus on france, especially when they are —

focus on france, especially when they are now celebrating the 60th anniversary of the relations between beijing _ anniversary of the relations between beijing and paris, they do have a relationship in terms of development. france has played a significant — development. france has played a significant part in china's nuclear power— significant part in china's nuclear power plants across the whole of china _ power plants across the whole of china in — power plants across the whole of china. in terms of investment, these are proiects — china. in terms of investment, these are projects that involve billions of us— are projects that involve billions of us dollars. we're not talking about _ of us dollars. we're not talking about one — of us dollars. we're not talking about one but many china. you mention the — about one but many china. you mention the energy _ about one but many china. gm, mention the energy sector. i understand china is angry about an investigation into chinese wind turbine supplies for the european market, and also they have been looking to chinese subsidies for solar panels as well.— looking to chinese subsidies for solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly — solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly the _ solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly the things _ solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly the things that - solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly the things that china . solar panels as well. indeed. these are exactly the things that china is | are exactly the things that china is trying _ are exactly the things that china is trying to— are exactly the things that china is trying to sell to the world at this very moment when there are plenty of

scepticism _ very moment when there are plenty of scepticism around the world on how the chinese — scepticism around the world on how the chinese economy is doing since it re—emerged from the covid—19 pandemic— it re—emerged from the covid—19 pandemic that has lasted for three years _ pandemic that has lasted for three years it _ pandemic that has lasted for three years it is — pandemic that has lasted for three years. it is indeed recovering china insists _ years. it is indeed recovering china insists it— years. it is indeed recovering china insists it is — years. it is indeed recovering china insists it is. but at least one of those — insists it is. but at least one of those products china is trying to sell are — those products china is trying to sell are exactly these clean energy products — sell are exactly these clean energy products. any effort by western countries, — products. any effort by western countries, european countries, to curb _ countries, european countries, to curb anv— countries, european countries, to curb any big — countries, european countries, to curb any big sales of chinese equipment into their territory, wind turbines _ equipment into their territory, wind turbines or— equipment into their territory, wind turbines or solar panels or things like that, — turbines or solar panels or things like that, is— turbines or solar panels or things like that, is definitely going to upset — like that, is definitely going to upset china. just like that, is definitely going to unset china-— like that, is definitely going to upset china. like that, is definitely going to uset china. , ., ., ., upset china. just to go back to hugh schofield, upset china. just to go back to hugh schofield. we _ upset china. just to go back to hugh schofield, we are _ upset china. just to go back to hugh schofield, we are seeing _ upset china. just to go back to hugh schofield, we are seeing other- schofield, we are seeing other pictures inside the elysee palace of the chinese president are sitting around the table with ursula von der leyen and emanuel macron. how do you

think he is going to push any lines on ukraine and whether china can stop helping, in the us�*s view, stop helping russia with its efforts in ukraine. is that something they can openly bring up at these meetings, or will that be kept behind closed doors? he or will that be kept behind closed doors? . , or will that be kept behind closed doors? ., , .,, doors? he will raise the most difficult issues _ doors? he will raise the most difficult issues with _ doors? he will raise the most difficult issues with president| doors? he will raise the most i difficult issues with president xi jinping if he thinks it is right. this is the new tough europe that he wants to be there. he is speaking for this new tough europe which may be wishful thinking but it's what he'd like to see happening in ukraine is definitely part of this picture. the europeans and macron believe that president xi jinping is indirectly or directly helping president putin. he wants to use what leverage, he is not blaming president xi in particular but he wants to use chinese leverage, if possible, to bring putin back and

may be lead the way toward some kind of resolution to the conflict. the view here seems it is most unlikely xijinping would give anything on this. it is far too much in chinese interests to keep the ambiguity going, to say we are not participants in this war on the one hand, and that's what president xi said in his tribute this morning and saying it is not our walk, don't blame us, but at the same time to keep up its deliveries of various goods to russia to keep their economy afloat. the view of many scientologists here is that chinese interests are developing a block thatis interests are developing a block that is anti—european, anti—american, i should say, anti—western in its largerform, easy at work and for those purposes, but its overriding interest is to see the growth of this other block that will include russia, parts of the south, as an alternative to what they see as the american hegemony.

—— sinologists. hugh schofield, thank you very much indeed. we will keep an eye on events in paris where we see chinese president xi jinping meeting the french president emanuel macron and also the european commission president ursula von der leyen sitting around the table, and keep an eye on those meetings and bring you the latest from that. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

israel's military has begun ordering palestinian civilians to leave parts of eastern rafah ahead of a planned operation in the southern gaza city. this video from the israeli defence forces, urges people to move to what they call a 'humanitarian zone' in the al—mawasi and khan younis areas. the idf are calling it a 'limited operation' affecting about 100,000 people. western and arab leaders have repeatedly warned against a major ground operation in rafah, because of the large numbers

of palestinians sheltering there. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu insists the move is necessary. our middle east correspondent yolande knell has more. early this morning, we started to hear that flyers had been dropped by the israeli military on parts of eastern rafah. they've also been using social media broadcasts in arabic and text messages telling people to get out of this area to the east of the southernmost city, and basically head towards two humanitarian zones that have been set up, tent cities in al mawasi, which is closer to the coast that has been expanded in recent days by the israeli army. and also a tent cityjust outside of khan yunis in the south. and already witnesses are telling us that people are starting to flee from that area. they're using donkey carts, cars, where they've got those available, packing up their belongings and moving. some of them also going, of course, to western rafah, a bit closer.

and yet the fear does remain, despite the israeli military saying this is a limited operation, that this could be expanded into a wider ground offensive. the israeli military, when it was talking to journalists this morning, talked about things happening in a gradual way. they're very aware, of course, that there has been a lot of criticism of the idea of a full—scale ground offensive in rafah from western powers, including israel's closest ally, the us. we've had the un and humanitarian agencies all saying that this could result in a dire humanitarian situation, both when it comes to aid and also in terms of civilian casualties, because you have so many people crammed into this area right on the border with egypt. and talk us through the timing of this and israel appearing to suggest that it's somehow linked to the failure of the talks to come to a conclusion on a ceasefire and hostage releases. that's very much what the suggestion

is from a statement that came out from israel's defense minister, yoav gallant, basically saying that he had called up the us defense secretary overnight, had warned him about this operational plan by israel and had said that it became necessary because of what they said was hamas's rejection of the framework for a new deal on a cease fire in gaza and the release of israeli hostages. now, a hamas spokesperson has come out saying that these new evacuation orders could result in a dangerous escalation. hamas had not been saying that the latest talks had broken down on a new ceasefire, only that a hamas delegation had left cairo where they'd been meeting egyptian mediators and had gone back to doha to consult the senior hamas leadership. certainly, though, there had been signs that things had hit a rocky patch after things sounded very positive towards the end of last week.

and we did have yesterday as well about ten rockets fired by hamas towards the kerem shalom crossing, this key crossing for aid entering into gaza. the hamas military wing saying it was targeting israeli forces in a military base just nearby. there were three israeli soldiers killed and about a dozen wounded, according to the israeli military. it then launched strikes inside rafah. and the israeli military spokesperson has been using what happened yesterday to basically say that the presence of hamas inside rafah remains something extremely dangerous, something that israel has to deal with. james elder who's a spokesperson for the united nation's children's james elder who's a spokesperson for the united nations children's fund, also known as unicef, told me what he thinks the impact will be of the evacuation. absolutely devastating. you have families in rafah. their coping capacity has been smashed. this is six months of enduring this

war, moving many times, probably having lost a home already. their children are malnourished. they've already been living in conditions with one one shower for 3,500. they're being told to move, quote unquote, to a humanitarian zone. that's a unilaterally declared humanitarian zone. that's not a humanitarian zone where humanitarians have been able to provide the services they need to. so i've been talking to colleagues and friends in rafah this morning and they're terrified. i was speaking, lauren, to a young woman. she's like, "i know this has been coming. i just don't know what to pack." they'll go to an area in the middle of zone lauren called deir balah, where there is literally raw sewage in the streets or maybe to al mawasi, which is a beach. same story applies. nowhere is safe, but as unbearable as this is, it's happening and it's going to be horrific. and is it your understanding that there are only specific areas that people have been allowed to move to? or can they can they choose? no. there are specific

areas, without a doubt. partly they will have to choose based on those people who have the means to leave. a lot of people have injured children with them. hospitals, as i've seen, hospitals cannot cope with the number of injuries. there's a lot of children who have had amputations, who are back living in tents. those families will find it hard to move. but geographically, logistically, no, you still can't. a lot of families will not be able to move to the north if they'd hoped to. khan younis is impossible. that's another city bordering rafah. that is rubble, not a little bit, but street after street of rubble. so they'll be pushed into this area called mawasi, lauren, which is a beach area. it's sand. it has next to no sanitation or hygiene. it's getting hot right now in gaza. it's raining today, but it's getting hot. so they'll be in tents side by side, five or six times the population density of new york city. but all on the ground, not a high—rise to be seen, with no hospital care. the last remaining hospital of size is in rafah, european hospital, so named because it was donated by the people of europe.

it's got 20,000 people hiding there and thousands more in care. they will have to move somewhere without the medical care that they need. you said that the israeli army had set up these areas without assistance from the humanitarian community. what can you now do in terms of providing help if people are moving? is there anything you can do? yeah, it's a great question. the whole aid operation has been so fragile because of denials and restrictions and insecurity and bombardments. let's not forget our colleagues from the world central kitchen who were killed. a week later, a unicef vehicle came underfire. now, of course, that crossing in rafah, that is the lifeline of aid. if we are going to get close to meeting the the needs of people, that crossing will now be closed for i don't know for how long. so, no, we have to be clear. you can't unilaterally declare a safe zone — firstly because the other side won't be considering

it as safe, and secondly, because the united nations needs time to actually try and support a million or two people. i said this in november. unicef and the un has said this long from the very start in november and december, this safe zone narrative is very dangerous because a safe zone legally must also provide water, food, sanitation and protection. these zones don't have that for people. and quite frequently, as the people in rafah will tell you, safe zones also get bombed. the former deputy first minister of scotland, john swinney, is expected to be confirmed as the next leader of the scottish national party shortly. the party activist graeme mccormick decided not to stand, leaving mr swinney as the only candidate. president putin has ordered the russian military to hold nuclear weapon drills, involving the navy and troops based near ukraine. meanwhile, front line ukrainian soldiers have told the bbc the army needs to re—think how it conscripts men to fight. they say a failure to train and mobilise enough recruits means some have been fighting without a break since russia's full—scale invasion more than two years ago.

our ukraine correspondentjames waterhouse has the story. under the green canopy of a ukrainian spring, an artillery unit waits for their next order. some of these men have been fighting for months, if not years. translation: my men know each vehicle, says their commander. i it's like a woman with her own characteristics. as russian forces inch closer, they're hunkering down and waiting for billions of dollars' worth of long—delayed american ammunition to finally be delivered. this time last year, ukraine was preparing for a counter—offensive, but this time it's different — they're preparing for what might be coming. this ammunition will help but ukraine is also grappling with trying to mobilise enough men to replace these ones. kyiv is widening the call—up age but radio operator oleksandr, who works and lives in this bunker, thinks it's more

thanjust a numbers game. translation: if we all go home, i inexperienced soldiers might be able to hold the line, but a lot of them will die. in the nearby city of kramatorsk, ilya, a frontline medic, tells me officials are not honest with recruits, who are thrown into the front line indefinitely with little training. he thinks there should be a limit on the toughest deployments. it would be more truth and effective if military recruitment office would say, "right, you will have super hard job — infantry, but for, for example, for half a year. then, you'll go to next level training and you'll got more specific tasks to do." ministers are trying to restore trust in the way the army recruits, whilst turning up the pressure

for men to sign up. inna sovsun is a kyiv mp, whose partner is fighting, and she thinks there are enough men to swap in and out from the front line. there are more people who are not serving than those who are serving. and the numbers is not even one to one, it's a much bigger ratio. just how much by the fact, you know, with the fact your husband, your partner is serving, how much has that shaped your view? of course, my understanding is shaped by who i am, by the fact that i, you know, spend countless nights worrying about where my partner is, if he is ok and so on and so forth. it's an anxiety shared by millions of ukrainians. tired soldiers are torn between needing to defend their country and wanting to go home. james waterhouse, bbc news, the donetsk region. before we go we can look again at

the pictures of president xi jinping arriving at the elysee palace for talks with french president emanuel macron and ursula von der leyen. full state honours for this visit which is xijinping's full state honours for this visit which is xi jinping's first visit to europe in five years. ukraine and trade with the eu expected to dominate the agenda. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. we're set to see a bit of a mix of weather types through the bank holiday monday. we have got some warm sunshine out there for some of us, but in other areas, some pretty heavy downpours and more persistent rain around, particularly across the southeast of england and southeast scotland as well. close to areas of low pressure that are still driving our weather at the moment, this low pressure towards the south will slowly ease away through the day and higher pressure is going to build in as we head through the rest of the week. but back to today, then, for the rest of monday, we've got that rain sitting

across the southeast of england, fairly patchy in nature, but a few heavy spells. there could be the odd thunderstorm. it's fairly cloudy here. there'll be more sunshine through parts of devon and cornwall, into wales, through the midlands as well. so sunny spells but also a peppering of showers. if you do catch one it could be heavy and thundery. some of the warmest spots, hull, for instance, up to about 19 degrees. but we're typically looking at the mid to high teens for northern ireland and northern and western scotland, a fair amount of dry weather on the cards, some sunshine, a bit more cloud working into the north here. but for central and south east scotland, you're going to keep the cloud. the rain will be easing out through the day. and into the evening hours, most of us lose the showery rain. it'll slowly clear away from the southeast, but mayjust linger for the likes of kent, for instance, to start your tuesday morning. and there'll be some low cloud, some mist and some fog patches, especially for scotland where we've got that wet ground. eastern england, for instance as well, a few fog patches towards the southwest, but it should brighten up through the day tomorrow. so some sunny spells for many of us.

still some showers bubbling up through the day, but they won't be as heavy or as frequent as the showers we've got out there today. top temperatures probably a degree or so warmer, 19, 20 degrees for some of us. but if you are stuck under the cloud across parts of scotland, for instance, about 13 for aberdeen. now, into wednesday, high pressure is building in. so it's squeezing away most of the showers. a lot of dry weather for england and wales, can't rule out the odd showery showery spell, but for most places a much drier spell of weather. a bit more cloud working in from the north west ahead of this area of rain. but top temperatures quite widely around 19 or 20 degrees. and then high pressure stays with us towards the end of the week. it's just sitting towards the south. so we'll start to see a few weather fronts toppling around the northern end of that high pressure. at times that'll bring a little bit of showery rain to parts of scotland, northern ireland too. to parts of scotland, northern ireland, too. but for most of us things are looking much drier through the week ahead and it'll be warming up. we could see those temperatures in the mid 20s by next weekend. bye— bye.

this is bbc news, the headlines. israel's military begins what it calls a "limited and temporary" evacuation of civilians from rafah in southern gaza. prime minister rishi sunak says the local election results could suggest his party is on course to lose its majority. john swinney�*s expected to be confirmed as the new leader of the scottish national party later, after a potential challenger pulls out of the race. and the wait is nearly over for the world's largest live music contest — eurovision week kicks off in style in sweden. an evacuation has been ordered in rafah. live pictures coming in, the area that has been affected. israel's military has begun what it it is a limited and temporary

evacuation from rafah, where about a million civilians have been sheltering as though war has affected the rest of where they live, they been forced onto this area and the international community has been pushing for israel to avoid any ground operation in rafah because it is worried about the effect on the civilians and humanitarian situation and we heard from unicef this morning saying this could affect ordinary people living there very badly because they have very little in the way of humanitarian provision, no hospitals, no running water and so this area is one that that israeli forces i think they should move to and they say they should go to the khan younis area. we will bring you more during the morning. rishi sunak, has acknowledged the conservatives may not win the next uk general election. speaking to the times newspaper, the prime minister said one analysis of thursday's local election defeats suggested the uk was on course

for a hung parliament and said voters would not want to see sir keir starmer "propped up in downing street" by the snp or smaller parties. here's our political correspondent, helen catt. in the calm after the elections, there's a lot for the prime minister to think about. rishi sunak appears safe from a challenge from his own mps, despite a very bad set of election results for the conservatives. mr sunak told the times he was determined that his party would come together and show people they were delivering. a view echoed by his party chairman. i think it's sort of self—indulgent for us to be talking to ourselves and talking about ourselves at the moment. whenever i go on the doorstep, i'd agree with some others who've spoken and said what they want to see is us putting forward a clear vision for the country. you know, i think we've seen a lot of that from the prime minister over the last few days. i just want to say thank you. among the losses, andy street, now no longer the mayor of the west midlands,

along with nearly 500 councillors. mr sunak has said those losses were bitterly disappointing.