Zelensky applies for Ukraine to join EU as talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegates conclude

A tense calm reigned on Monday in Kyiv, explosions and gunfire were heard in embattled cities in eastern Ukraine, and terrified Ukrainian families huddled overnight in shelters, basements or corridors

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, second left, and Davyd Arakhamia, faction leader of the Servant of the People party in the Ukrainian Parliament, third right, attend the peace talks in the Gomel region, Belarus. Picture: Sergei Kholodiin/AP

President Volodymyr Zelensky has applied for Ukraine to join the 27-nation European Union on the fifth day of the Russian invasion of his country.

Mr Zelenskiy has asked the European Union to allow Ukraine to gain membership immediately under a special procedure as it defends itself from invasion by Russian forces.