May 4, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

Russia and the United States are on what Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called "the verge of an open armed conflict." But Ryabkov told Russia's state-owned First Channel that "Moscow is working to make sure it doesn't happen," according to state news agency TASS. 

Ryabkov said Moscow and Washington are in contact as needed, including at a high level, but also added that "Washington has long been a direct party to the Ukrainian conflict and aims to destroy sovereign Russia," TASS reported.  

Some context: The news comes on the heels of Russia's claim that the US was involved in an alleged drone attack on the Kremlin and an assassination attempt against President Vladimir Putin. Both allegations drew sharp denials from Kyiv and Washington.

John Kirby, the National Security Council’s Coordinator for Strategic Communications, called Russia’s allegation that the US directed Ukraine to carry out such an attack “ridiculous.”

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the US did not know who was responsible.

A Pentagon spokesperson denied US involvement in the purported drone attack on the Kremlin and accused Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson of lying. 

The White House still has no indication who was behind the drone attack and said the White House does not "endorse, we do not encourage, we do not support attacks on individual leaders," Kirby added. 

Meanwhile, Russia unleashed its worst attacks on Kyiv in a year, Ukraine’s military said. It's the third time in four days missiles and drones hit the city.

The barrage came after Moscow accused Ukraine of attempting to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin in a drone strike at the Kremlin overnight on Wednesday, allegations Kyiv has vehemently denied.

Here are the latest developments:

The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) shot down Thursday night over Kyiv was a Kyiv asset that appeared to have malfunctioned, according to Ukraine's Air Force. It was taken out by Ukraine’s military in order to prevent any incident or accident, Ukraine's air force said on Facebook.

A Bayraktar TB2 UAV lost control during a scheduled flight in the Kyiv region at about 8 p.m. local time on Thursday night, the agency said in a statement.

Because the “uncontrolled presence” of a UAV in the sky above the capital “could lead to undesirable consequences, It was decided to use mobile fire teams” to destroy the UAV, the statement read.

The statement also says the incident was likely due to a technical malfunction, adding the cause of the incident was being investigated.

The agency called the downing of the UAV a “pity,” adding “but this is technology, and such cases do happen.”

The tight ring of security that surrounds the seat of the Russian presidency was punctured in dramatic fashion by what appeared to be two attempted drone strikes in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Many details about the incident remain murky. Here’s what we know – and the questions that remain:

What happened? Moscow said the alleged attack took place in the early hours of Wednesday. Two “unmanned aerial vehicles” were intercepted and destroyed before they caused any damage or injury, the Kremlin said. The Russian president was not in the building at the time, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

Videos then emerged on social media appearing to show the incident. CNN analysis of these videos supports Moscow’s claim that two drones were flown above the Kremlin.

Who's saying what? The Kremlin blamed Ukraine, describing the purported drone attack as an “attempt on the President’s life.” On Thursday, Russia also claimed the US was involved in the attack. Both allegations drew sharp denials from Kyiv and Washington.

Who else could be responsible? One possibility is that the incident was the work of Russian partisans – as claimed by former Russian lawmaker Ilya Ponomarev who's linked with militant groups in Russia. Others speculate that the incident could have been a false flag operation to either rally the public or escalate Russia’s military mobilization. US officials have also said they were still assessing the incident, and had no information about who might have been responsible.

What happens next? Moscow already launched a wave of missiles at Kyiv following the incident, a move in line with its playbook after previous flashpoints in the war. And messages written on Russian drones launched at Odesa overnight read “for Moscow” and “for the Kremlin,” according to the Ukrainian military, an apparent reference to the alleged attack.

US and Ukrainian officials have in the past warned that Russia has planned so-called “false flag” attacks along Russia’s border with Ukraine as a pretext for military escalation and Russia has also been embarrassed in recent months by symbolic incidents, such as the sinking of the guided-missile cruiser Moskva. Moscow is also looking to project strength by following through with its planned Victory Day parade. Peskov reiterated that the parade would go ahead as planned.

But while Russia has on occasion used missile bombardments around Ukraine to show its anger following flashpoints in the conflict, the ground fighting in eastern Ukraine has been bogged down in stalemate for months and it appears unlikely that Wednesday’s incident will have a material impact on momentum.

Russia has dismissed claims that it deployed military equipment and explosives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

On Wednesday, Ukraine’s State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate accused Russia of placing weapons, explosives and military equipment in one of the power plant’s units. The Inspectorate said it received the information during its weekly meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency representatives a day earlier.

“In the event of an emergency situation at the Zaporizhzhia NPP with a potentially possible release of radioactive substances into the environment, the consequences will be felt not only by Ukraine — but they will also have a cross-border nature,” the inspectorate said. 

It called on the international community “for a consolidated and decisive response to the actions of the aggressor country.”

Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Russian-appointed military-civilian administration in occupied Zaporizhzhia, called the claims “a lie.”

Where things stand at the facility: Russian forces continue to control the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, but the plant is still physically operated by Ukrainian staff. The plant has frequently been disconnected from Ukraine’s power grid due to intense shelling in the area, raising fears of a nuclear accident.

Technical personnel from the United Nations, Turkey, Russia and Ukraine will meet in Istanbul on May 5 to discuss the grain corridor, Turkish Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar said Thursday.

After the meeting of the delegations, deputy ministers will gather next week in Istanbul, Akar said. The grain corridor deal is set to end on May 18 and talks aim to extend it.

“The impression we have received from the meetings and speeches is that these works will result in a positive outcome. We work for it, we strive for it,” the official said.

A meeting of deputy ministers had originally been announced for May 5 but Akar said "the necessity of holding a meeting" with the technical personnel before the other meeting had emerged.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was shot down by Kyiv air defense forces, the city's military administration said Thursday evening on Telegram.

There were explosions and a fire in the Solomianka residential district of Kyiv city, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a Telegram post, adding that it could be debris from the UAV. Emergency services are on the scene, according to Klitschko. 

"In Solomianka district, rescuers are localizing a fire in a 4-story building. The area of the fire is 50 square meters (538 square feet)," he added. "No one has sought medical help so far."

Air raid alerts went into force for a short period on Thursday evening in Kyiv, according to CNN's team on the ground.

CNN's team in the Ukrainian capital heard explosions during the air raid alerts, which sounded like the city's air defense systems were in action. 

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) concluded that “a large number” of Ukrainian minors have been “displaced” to Russia and Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine, and Moscow "manifestly violated" the interests of these children, according to its report released Thursday.

The report looked into the alleged Russian deportation of Ukrainian children since the start of the war in February 2022.

Though the team of experts were not able to determine the exact number of children Russian forces deported, “the fact of a large-scale displacement of Ukrainian children does not seem disputed by either Ukraine or Russia,” the report said. 

Ukrainian officials told OSCE experts they estimated the number of “kidnapped” children to be between 200,000 and 300,000. 

The report also found that the three most common reasons for the organized displacement of children are, "the evacuation for security reasons, the transfer for the purpose of adoption or foster care, and temporary stays in the so-called recreation camps,”

The team of experts led by Professor Veronika Bílková, Dr. Cecilie Hellestveit and Dr. Elīna Šteinerte found that Ukrainian children taken by Russian forces “are exposed to pro-Russian information campaigns often amounting to targeted re-education.”

“The Russian Federation does not take any steps to actively promote the return of Ukrainian children. Rather, it creates various obstacles for families seeking to get their children back,” the experts added.

The report “further exposed the abhorrent actions carried out at the behest of the Russian leadership, said Deirdre Brown, UK Acting Ambassador to the OSCE. “The report indicates figures in the several thousands, with the true figure likely to be far higher."

In late March 2023, the United States and 44 other countries in the OSCE invoked a special mechanism to investigate alleged human rights violations by Russia during its war in Ukraine, “particularly with regard to the forced transfer and deportation of children by the Russian Federation.” 

According to the US and several European governments, Russian President Vladimir Putin's administration has carried out a scheme to forcibly deport thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia, often to a network of dozens of camps, where the minors undergo political reeducation.  

The International Criminal Court (ICC) earlier in March issued arrest warrants for Putin and another Russian officials related to this reported forced deportation. 

The OSCE does not have the authority to legally punish Russia if it finds evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity, but their facts can be given to other bodies that do have that authority. Both Russia and Ukraine are members of the 57 nation OSCE. 

Russia has previously denied it is doing anything illegal, claiming it is bringing Ukrainian children to safety.