May 26, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

By Simone McCarthy, Andrew Raine, Sana Noor Haq, Aditi Sangal, Leinz Vales, Matt Meyer and Elise Hammond, CNN

Updated 7:54 p.m. ET, May 26, 2023
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6:22 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Medical facility hit in Dnipro, casualties reported, regional official says

From CNN's Mari Kostenko in Kyiv

A medical facility has been hit in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the head of the regional military administration said Friday.

Serhii Lysak wrote on Telegram that Russian forces “have struck a medical facility. There are casualties." No further details have been given.

Strikes overnight: A series of drone and missile strikes rained down across Ukraine  — in particular the Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions — overnight Thursday into Friday, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

The attacks began at 10 p.m. Thursday night and the last one was reported at 5 a.m. the following morning, the Air Force said.

In the city of Dnipro, Lysak said five cruise missiles and six “Shahed” drones were downed by Ukrainian forces.

Lysak said a fire had broken out in a private household and two private enterprises, but were extinguished, while a transportation company, two houses and a car were damaged. A gas station was also affected and an injured employee had received medical treatment.

3:14 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Belgorod shelled overnight, governor says

From CNN's Maria Kostenko in Kyiv

Vyacheslav Gladkov attends a meeting outside Moscow on January 24.
Vyacheslav Gladkov attends a meeting outside Moscow on January 24. Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP/Getty Images

Graivoron in Russia's Belgorod region was shelled overnight, according to regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov.

The area is one of those that has been attacked by anti-Putin Russian nationals, who are aligned with the Ukrainian army, in recent days. Belgorod borders northeastern Ukraine.

Gladkov did not report any casualties, but said a gas pipeline and a power transmission line were damaged by shells, as were several households and a shop.

He added that emergency services were on the scene.

6:22 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Drone and missile strikes reported in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv overnight

From Maria Kostenko in Kyiv

Smoke rises in the sky over the city after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 26.
Smoke rises in the sky over the city after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 26. Gleb Garanich/Reuters

A series of drone and missile strikes rained down across Ukraine — and in particular the Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions — overnight Thursday into Friday, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

The attacks began at 10 p.m. Thursday night and the last one was reported at 5 a.m. the following morning, the Air Force said.

The command reported 17 cruise missiles and 31 “attack drones” and noted that there were strikes in Dnipro and Kharkiv regions using S-300/S-400 missile systems.

In the city of Dnipro, the head of the regional military administration Serhii Lysak said five cruise missiles and six “Shahed” drones were downed by Ukrainian forces.

"It was such a hard night, it was loud. The enemy massively attacked our region with missiles and drones," he said.

On the damage caused, Lysak said a fire had broken out in a private household and two private enterprises, but were extinguished, while a transportation company, two houses and a car were damaged. A gas station was also affected and an injured employee had received medical treatment.

Kyiv also saw some air attacks across the city. Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv city military administration, posted on Telegram that Tu-95MS strategic bombers from the Caspian Sea area, presumably with Kh-101/Kh-555 missiles, had targeted the city, but all were “detected and destroyed.”

He said in another post shortly after that there was some damage due to falling debris in the Obolon and Shevchenkivskyi districts of the city, but did not cite any casualties.

Some context: The latest round of attacks come as Ukraine has been facing an intensified aerial assault from Russian forces -- providing a key test for its air defense systems.

2:10 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Russia would launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike if West provided nuclear weapons to Ukraine: Medvedev

From CNN's Maria Kostenko in Kyiv

Dmitry Medvedev attends a session "Sovereignty in Law" in St. Petersburg, Russia on May 12.
Dmitry Medvedev attends a session "Sovereignty in Law" in St. Petersburg, Russia on May 12. Yevgeny Pavlenko/Kommersant/Sipa/AP

Russia would launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike if the West provided Ukraine with nuclear weapons, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and former president Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday.

Russia's state news agency RIA Novosti quoted Medvedev saying that "in case the West provides Ukraine with the nuclear weapon, we will have to make a pre-emptive strike."

"The more destructive the weapons supplied to Kiev, the more likely a nuclear apocalypse scenario," Medvedev added in comments made to reporters while on a trip to Vietnam.

Russian state media outlet Tass cited Medvedev as saying "the Anglo-Saxons are not fully aware of this and believe that it will not come to this," adding that "it will come, under certain conditions."

The TASS article stated that Medvedev was commenting on the expanding range of weapons that NATO countries have pledged to send to Ukraine, when he said "maybe they will give nuclear weapons."

He then warned, "but then it will mean that a missile with a nuclear charge will arrive at them."

Some context: The US and its allies have not suggested they would provide nuclear weapons to Ukraine. NATO has decried Russian President Vladimir Putin's nuclear rhetoric and warned of "severe consequences for Russia" if any such weapons were used.

3:49 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Explosion heard in Russian city of Krasnodar

From CNN's Josh Pennington and Hira Humayun

An explosion was heard in the Russian city of Krasnodar on Friday.
An explosion was heard in the Russian city of Krasnodar on Friday. Twitter

An explosion was heard in the Russian city of Krasnodar on Friday morning, state news agencies Tass and RIA Novosti reported.

Citing the operational headquarters of Krasnodar territory, the news agencies said the roof and windows of a building on Morskaya Street had been damaged. No casualties have been reported so far.

Social media videos geolocated by CNN to Morskaya Street show what appears to be an unmanned aerial vehicle in the sky, followed by the sound of an explosion. Other social media images show smoke rising from the building, and another image shows the building damaged.

"According to information coming to the city's emergency call center, at 04:17 a.m. in the city of Krasnodar, an explosion was heard in the area of a building on Morskaya Street, 54/2," Tass said.

"Emergency services were sent to the scene. No casualties have been reported. There was damage to the building's roof and windows, but no fire," the report said.

12:57 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Iran has a direct route to send Russia weapons – and Western powers can do little to stop it

From CNN's Lauren Kent and Salma Abdelaziz

The waters of the Caspian Sea appear deceptively calm. But this sea route – which provides a direct path between Iran and Russia – is increasingly busy with cargo traffic, including suspected weapons transfers from Tehran to Moscow.

As cooperation between the two countries deepens, the Caspian Sea route is being used to move drones, bullets, and mortar shells that the Russian government has purchased from the Iranian regime to bolster its war effort in Ukraine, according to experts. Tracking data shows that vessels in the region are increasingly going “dark” – suggesting growing intent to obfuscate the movement of goods.

Last year, data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence revealed a September spike in the number of gaps in vessels tracking data in the Caspian. That’s shortly after the United States and Ukrainian governments say Moscow acquired drones from Tehran last summer. Russia’s use of Iranian drones increased in the fall, including against critical energy infrastructure in Ukraine.

And analysts say that Ukraine’s Western allies would have little power to stop such arms deliveries.

“There is no risk to Iranian exports in the Caspian Sea because of the bordering countries – they don’t have the capability or motive to interdict in these sorts of exchanges,” said Martin Kelly, lead intelligence analyst at security company EOS Risk Group.

Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, all former Soviet republics, are the other nations with ports on the Caspian Sea.

It’s a “perfect environment for this trade to go unopposed,” Kelly added.

Read the full story here.

6:18 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

"Get out": Influx of Russians to Georgia stokes old enmities

From CNN's Christian Edwards

Mother of Georgia statue in Tbilisi.
Mother of Georgia statue in Tbilisi. iStock/Getty Images

Above Tbilisi’s Old Town stands the Mother of Georgia statue, like a less imposing Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. “Kartlis Deda,” as she is known to Georgians, holds a wine cup in her left hand and a sword in her right. She offers a choice to new arrivals. Come as a friend, you are our guest. Come as an enemy, you are not welcome.

Tbilisi, an ancient Silk Road city, is no stranger to foreigners turning up on its streets. But the arrival of more than 100,000 Russians in the country since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year has left Georgians uncertain whether to welcome them as friends or shun them as foes.

The government’s recent attempt to force through what critics see as a Kremlin-style “foreign agent” law, and the huge protests which prevented this, have not helped émigrés to settle in or locals to feel at ease alongside the new arrivals.

Many in Georgia fear what they see as the creeping Russification of their country – a story they know all too well.

On the streets of Tbilisi, the reception for Russian émigrés has also been mixed. “It’s a whole range of attitudes,” said Ivan, a 20-something IT consultant from a city in Russia’s far east. CNN is withholding Ivan’s real name, to protect him from retribution should he ever return to Russia.

Some Georgians are “warm and welcoming” and treat Russians as their “brothers,” Ivan told CNN. Others tell them to “get out.” The key difference is age, he has found.

“Those who are welcoming are mostly people who were born in the USSR. The ones who are Russophobic are mainly young people,” he said.

Read the full story here.

12:29 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

Wagner clashes in and around Bakhmut are decreasing. Here's what else you need to know

From CNN staff

An aerial image shows destruction in the frontline town of Bakhmut, Ukraine,  in this handout picture released on May 21.
An aerial image shows destruction in the frontline town of Bakhmut, Ukraine, in this handout picture released on May 21. Ukrainian Armed Forces/Reuters

The Russian reconnaissance ship Ivan Khurs was seemingly hit by an unmanned surface vessel in the Black Sea, new video shows, disputing Moscow's claim it had been able to thwart a Ukrainian attack on the craft.

Footage shared by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense on social media Thursday and analyzed by CNN appeared to show the moments just before the impact. 

Here are other headlines you should know:

Bakhmut developments: Ukraine's number of clashes with Wagner mercenaries in and around Bakhmut has been decreasing over the past few days, according to the spokesperson for the eastern grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Meanwhile, more than 100 Ukrainians who fought in the Bakhmut area and were captured by Russian troops have been released in a prisoner swap, the head of Ukraine’s presidential office said Thursday. And the head of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, told CNN he has handed over to Ukrainian authorities the body of a retired US Army Special Forces soldier who died fighting for Bakhmut.

Elsewhere in Ukraine: Russian officials in the occupied southern city of Berdiansk said Ukrainian forces have struck the city with a missile. A member of Russia's local administration in Zaporizhzhia said he still did not have information on casualties, adding that response teams were on site. And in the eastern Donetsk region, an official has accused Russian forces of destroying a dam and endangering nearby residents.

Military equipment: Finland on Thursday pledged to send additional military equipment to Ukraine. Meanwhile, the transfer of some tactical nuclear weapons from Russia to Belarus has begun, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said Thursday, according to state news agency BelTA.

Tariff and quota suspension: European trade ministers agreed to extend the temporary measures that suspend customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian imports to the European Union for another year, until June 2024. The temporary easing of trade regulations between Ukraine and the EU went into force in June 2022.

Foreign fighters on trial: Five foreigners who fought for Ukraine are to stand trial in absentia in Russia, according to state media. The group all fought for Ukraine in the defense of the southern city of Mariupol. 

12:28 a.m. ET, May 26, 2023

US does not support attacks on Russian soil and has "made it very clear" to Ukraine, White House official says

From CNN's DJ Judd

White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby appears on CNN on Thursday, May 25.
White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby appears on CNN on Thursday, May 25. CNN

US President Joe Biden's administration has reiterated in conversations with Ukraine that it does not support attacks on Russian soil, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told CNN Thursday.

“We have again made it very clear to the Ukrainians what our expectations are about attacking Russia — we don't want to encourage or enable that, we certainly don't want any US-made equipment used to attack Russian soil,” Kirby told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

“And we have gotten assurances from the Ukrainians that they will respect those wishes … we have been very clear that we want Ukraine to be able to defend its own soil, its own territory. They have been attacked. They have been invaded. They have a right to defend themselves," he continued. "But, we've also been clear, well, that we don't want to see this war escalate beyond this, the devastation and the violence that is already visited on the Ukrainian people.” 

The conversations with Ukraine didn’t involve “outlining consequences” but were “simply a reaffirmation," Kirby told CNN. He added that these discussions have happened "as recently as over just the last day or so."

Some context: Kirby's comments come on the heels of a CNN report that anti-Putin Russian fighters, fighting alongside Ukrainian armed forces, conducted a raid inside Russian territory. 

In an interview with CNN’s Sam Kiley, one of the Russian nationals said the raid was conducted using American-manufactured equipment purchased on the open market. Kirby said Thursday that he could not confirm that.

He instead said the US is providing equipment "to be used to defend Ukrainian soil."