May 24, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

By Tara Subramaniam, Sophie Tanno, Hannah Strange, Adrienne Vogt, Leinz Vales, Maureen Chowdhury and Elise Hammond, CNN

Updated 12:16 a.m. ET, May 25, 2023
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8:34 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Here's what we know about the cross-border attack claimed by anti-Putin Russians

From CNN's Rob Picheta and Nathan Hodge

Members of the Russian Volunteer Corps pose atop an armoured vehicle in Kozinka, Belgorod, in this photo released on May 23. 
Members of the Russian Volunteer Corps pose atop an armoured vehicle in Kozinka, Belgorod, in this photo released on May 23.  Russian Volunteer Corps/Handout/Reuters

Questions linger about the groups behind the cross-border attack that anti-Putin Russians say they launched from Ukraine, how it took place, and what it means for the war:

Was this a classic piece of a military sleight-of-hand, a brief show of force meant to confuse and distract Russian commanders? Does it signal the emergence of serious armed opposition inside Russia? Or are there murkier forces at work?

Here’s what you need to know:

  • What happened in Belgorod? A group of anti-Putin Russian nationals, who are aligned with the Ukrainian army, claimed responsibility for an attack in Russian’s southwestern region of Belgorod, which borders northeastern Ukraine. Two areas of the region were then hit by unmanned aerial vehicles, according to regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov, causing two houses to catch fire. One civilian from the village of Kozinka has died as a result of the cross-border fighting, Gladkov said on Tuesday. About 100 others were evacuated from the Russian border settlements of Glotovo and Kozinka in Belgorod, local authorities said.
  • What did the attackers do? They appeared to have achieved surprise, apparently taking control of a border post and giving the world dramatic images of Russian nationals actively taking up arms against the Kremlin. Smoke was also seen rising from apparent explosions in the regional capital of Belgorod, where local authorities confirmed what they described as two drone strikes.
  • Which groups are involved? The Freedom for Russia Legion said on Telegram early Tuesday that it and another group, the Russian Volunteer Corps, “continue to liberate the Belgorod region!” The post described the groups as “patriot volunteers” and claimed that Russia was vulnerable to attack as “Russia has no reserves to respond to military crises. All military personnel are dead, wounded or in Ukraine.”
  • How is the incident playing out in Russia? As Russian officials condemned the attack, analysts noted widespread confusion in Russia’s information space about how the attack was allowed to take place and how Moscow should respond. It has the potential to be embarrassing for President Vladimir Putin, who has for 15 months been leading an invasion he baselessly claimed was needed to keep Russia safe. With limited returns on the battlefield, Putin may now face discontent that the war is disrupting life at home.

Read more here.

8:29 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Ukraine was given heads-up about cross-border raid

From CNN’s Victoria Butenko

A helicopter circles over Russia's Belgorod region, the site of fighting between Russian defectors and pro-Kremlin troops amid the war in Ukraine.
A helicopter circles over Russia's Belgorod region, the site of fighting between Russian defectors and pro-Kremlin troops amid the war in Ukraine. astrapress/Telegram

Kyiv was given advance warning about the cross-border raid in Belgorod by the Freedom for Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps, a Ukrainian defense source told CNN on Wednesday.  

“Within Ukraine, international fighters are coordinated by the Defense Intelligence,” the source said. “As to this particular operation [in the Belgorod region], it was outside Ukraine, but Ukraine was warned about its intentions.”

Some context: A group of anti-Putin Russian nationals, who are aligned with the Ukrainian army, claimed responsibility for an attack earlier this week in Russian’s southwestern region of Belgorod, which borders north-eastern Ukraine.

Russia’s Investigative Committee announced an investigation into the attack on Telegram, claiming: “Residential and administrative buildings and civilian infrastructure were subjected to mortar and artillery fire. As a result of these criminal actions, several civilians were wounded.”

Parts of the region were then hit overnight by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), leaving nine people hospitalized, according to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov.

8:08 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Ukraine war disproportionately affecting older people, new UN report finds

From CNN's Radina Gigova

An elderly woman receives provisions from volunteers in Chasiv Yar, Ukraine on May 14.
An elderly woman receives provisions from volunteers in Chasiv Yar, Ukraine on May 14. Vincenzo Circosta/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The war in Ukraine is disproportionately affecting older people, especially elderly women and people with disabilities, and undermining their human rights, according to a new UN report published Wednesday. 

"The hostilities, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and Ukraine’s ravaged economy have severely undermined the human rights of older people," the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights finds in the report, which is based on the work of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU). 

“It was so scary for me to hear old people crying and moaning at night not from pain, but because they were hungry," a resident of the city of Hostomel is quoted as saying in the report about the situation in the city in 2022. 

"Older persons in areas directly affected by hostilities, on both sides of the front line, have not only faced direct threats to their life, but also suffered from food shortages, inadequate living conditions, electricity blackouts, water cuts, and lack of access to health services, medication and pensions (often their only form of income)," the report finds. "All these factors have drastically increased their vulnerability and undermined their right to life with dignity, especially during winter. Those with slower reaction times and restricted mobility have been particularly affected," it said. 

A quarter of Ukraine's population is more than 60 years old and over 1.7 million people are above the age of 80, according to the UN.

While older persons were already facing vulnerabilities before the start of the war, "the armed attack by the Russian Federation has led to a grave deterioration of their human rights, in particular their rights to life, social security, adequate housing, and health," the UN said. 

The UN called on Russia "to immediately cease its armed attack and withdraw its armed forces from Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders," as well as to take measures to ensure that "the rights to life, health, and an adequate standard of living" are fulfilled and respected of all residents, including older persons, in the areas that are under Russian control. 

The UN also urged the international community to "take steps to ensure that older persons are fully taken into account and supported through assistance and reconstruction programs," the report says. 

8:06 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

China and Russia to firmly support each other on "core interests," says Xi Jinping 

From CNN’s Wayne Chang

China's President Xi Jinping, center, attends a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, in Beijing, on May 24.
China's President Xi Jinping, center, attends a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, in Beijing, on May 24. Alexander Astafyev/Sputnik/AFP/Getty Images

China and Russia are willing to “firmly support” each other on matters concerning their respective "core interests," Chinese President Xi Jinping told Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on Wednesday, according to a readout from China's state broadcaster CCTV.  

Mishustin is currently visiting China and earlier predicted that bilateral trade would reach a new record level of $200 billion this year, as Beijing throws Moscow an economic lifeline amid its growing isolation and sanctions from the West.

Xi said both sides should continue to improve economic, trade and investment cooperation, consolidate and expand fundamental cooperation in energy and connectivity.

He also stated that China is willing to work with Russia and other Eurasia Economic Union countries – namely Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan – to promote the construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative and the formation of a more open regional market, so as to ensure a stable and smooth global industrial supply chain.  

The Chinese leader added that both sides will enhance coordination in multilateral forums, including the United Nations, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRIC and the G20.  

6:54 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Lukashenko to speak with Putin on sidelines of Eurasian Economic Forum in Moscow

From CNN’s Anna Chernova

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko at the Kremlin prior to the Victory Day military parade in Moscow, on May 9.
Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko at the Kremlin prior to the Victory Day military parade in Moscow, on May 9. Vladimir Smirnov/Sputnik/AFP/Getty Images/File

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has left for a two-day working visit to Russia, his press service said Wednesday.

Lukashenko is expected to attend the Eurasian Economic Forum and speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin Wednesday.

During the summit of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council on Thursday, the leaders of Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU) countries will consider the implementation of decisions on strategic directions for the development of Eurasian economic integration, and sum up the results of the international activities of the union, according to Lukashenko’s press service.

The Kremlin earlier confirmed to journalists Putin is expected to hold talks Lukashenko within the framework of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council.

Lukashenko attended the May 9 military parade in Moscow but was then taken ill.

Belarus is one of Russia’s few allies in its war on Ukraine. While the country’s military isn’t directly involved in the fighting, Belarus helped Russia launch its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, allowing the Kremlin’s troops to enter the country from its territory.

Putin said in March that Russia would station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, and was constructing a storage facility due to be completed by the beginning of July. 

7:08 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Rosatom and IAEA heads meet in Beijing to discuss Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant

From CNN's Seb Shukla

Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev is pictured with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi in Beijing, on May 24.
Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev is pictured with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi in Beijing, on May 24. Rosatom

The heads of Rosatom, the state-owned Russia atomic energy agency, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have met in Beijing and discussed the “issues related to the work of IAEA" at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), a statement released by Rosatom said. 

According to the statement, the meeting took place in Beijing as Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev was part of the delegation accompanying Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on his trip to the Chinese capital.

Some context: Earlier this week Rafael Grossi, the IAEA chief, said the Zaporizhzhia plant was “extremely vulnerable” after external power had been lost. The plant has been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022.

“#Ukraine’s #ZNPP this morning lost all external electricity for 7th time during conflict, forcing it to rely on emergency diesel generators for power; nuclear safety situation at the plant extremely vulnerable. We must agree to protect plant now; this situation cannot continue,” Grossi said in a tweet on Monday.

Ukrainian energy company Ukrenergo announced in a statement later Monday that power had been restored.

According to Ukrenergo, the plant had been cut off from the grid after the high-voltage line that supplies it was one of those damaged by a Russian attack on the Dnipro region, to the north of Zaporizhzhia, in the early hours of the morning.

Earlier this month, Moscow ordered the evacuation of residents from Russian-occupied areas close to the nuclear plant, prompting the United Nations' nuclear watchdog to raise safety concerns and describing the situation as "increasingly unpredictable."

5:17 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Kremlin spokesperson rules out freezing the Ukraine conflict, state media reports

From CNN's Seb Shukla

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends the Victory Day military parade in Moscow on May 9.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends the Victory Day military parade in Moscow on May 9. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images

Dmitry Peskov, the Russian president's spokesperson, has said he believes the conflict in Ukraine should not be allowed to freeze. 

Peskov was asked in an interview with Russia state media outlet TASS whether he agreed with the West's viewpoint that the conflict should not be frozen. He replied "Russia is in solidarity" with this view. 

The spokesperson was quoted as saying: “Russia is only considering the possibility of completing a special military operation: ensuring its interests, achieving Russia's goals either through a special military operation, or by other available means."

The comments come as Ukraine is expected to launch an imminent spring counter offensive which would spark more intense fighting and could prove to be a pivotal moment in the war.

Meanwhile Russians have been shocked by an attack on the country's southwestern Belgorod region, claimed by a Russian anti-Putin group that says its goal is the "complete liberation of Russia." The region's governor said Tuesday's incursion was followed by multiple drone attacks overnight which left nine people injured.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin is currently on a trip to Beijing, where he met Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday and praised strengthening relations and trade between the two countries. Beijing has thrown Moscow an economic lifeline from the impact of sanctions as it grows increasingly isolated from the West.

5:55 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

"Not a quiet night" for Belgorod, says governor, as 9 injured in drone attacks 

From CNN's Mari Kostenko and Seb Shukla

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

Nine people were hospitalized following drone attacks on Russia's southwestern Belgorod region overnight, its governor said Wednesday — a day after a group of anti-Putin Russians claimed to have launched an attack there.

Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said Tuesday was "not a calm night" for Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, as cars, homes and buildings sustained damage in the drone attacks. 

Gladkov said Russian air defenses had repelled "most" of the drones, however.

He added that 500 people were now in temporary accommodation centers across the region and power had still not been fully restored to some districts, including the town of Graivoron — the scene of an incursion Tuesday claimed by Russian volunteers aligned with Ukraine.

Russian region under fire: On Telegram Tuesday, the Freedom for Russia Legion called the attack on Belgorod a "peacekeeping operation."

It said the goal was to create a "demilitarized zone between Russia and Ukraine, to destroy the security forces that serve the Putin regime and to demonstrate to the people of Russia that it is possible to create pockets of resistance and successfully fight against the Putin regime." 

“These goals of the operation were successfully achieved,” it said.

2:58 a.m. ET, May 24, 2023

Russia predicts China trade will hit record $200 billion this year

From CNN's Laura He in Hong Kong

Mikhail Mishustin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang attend a welcome ceremony in Beijing on May 24.
Mikhail Mishustin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang attend a welcome ceremony in Beijing on May 24. Thomas Peter/AFP/Getty Images

Trade between Russia and China is expected to hit a new record level of $200 billion this year, according to Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin during his trip to China, as Moscow faces growing isolation from the West.

Russia has been hit by unprecedented Western sanctions since it unleashed a devastating war against Ukraine and has been shut out of much of the global economy.

But China, which has declared “no limits” to its friendship with its northern neighbor, has thrown the Kremlin an economic lifeline, tempering the impact of its banishment from the global financial system.

Last year, bilateral trade jumped nearly 30% to a record $190 billion, mainly boosted by China buying Russian energy. This year, their trade continued to surge, up 41% in the first four months, according to Chinese customs figures.

“I believe that this year we will be able to achieve the goals set by the two countries’ leaders and bring the total trade to $200 billion,” Mishustin said during a speech at the China-Russia business forum in Shanghai on Tuesday, according to China’s state-run Global Times.

That will be one year ahead of the schedule set by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in 2019.

Energy cooperation with China remains Russia’s “absolute priority,” Mishustin said.

Read more here.