May 26, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

The Kremlin demanded that the United Kingdom and other countries unfreeze Russian foreign assets without any conditions, as Western allies of Ukraine load economic pressure onto Moscow over the conflict.

“Otherwise, they violate all the norms and rules of both their domestic legislation and international law," he added.

Some background: The United States and its allies have blocked or seized $58 billion worth of assets owned or controlled by sanctioned Russians in the past year, in an effort to crunch Russia's economy amid the war.

The Russian Elites, Proxies and Oligarchs (REPO) Task Force said in March that they will "redouble" their efforts to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin and his associates.

REPO is a joint effort between the US, Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, the UK and the European Commission. It was established last year in order to monitor sanctions evasion.

CNN's Sam Fossum contributed reporting.

Sweden will “try to accommodate” instructing Ukrainian pilots on Gripen fighter jets if Ukraine makes the request, Sweden's defense minister told CNN, as Kyiv ramps up pleas to Western allies about the procurement of fighter aircraft.

“We are eager to support Ukraine in all ways possible and if they want their pilots to evaluate Gripen, we will try to accommodate that, although some decision remains on both sides,” Sweden's Defense Minister Pal Jonson said.

He was responding to a question about a Thursday report from Swedish public broadcaster SVT that said Ukrainian pilots will be trained on the jets.

He added that the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense has requested a “limited operational evaluation” of the Swedish Gripen Fighter system. “We are currently working to meet the criterias of this request."

While Jonson indicated Sweden is willing to train Ukrainian pilots, he also told CNN that Stockholm will not be supplying Ukraine with Gripen fighter aircraft “at this stage.”

“We exclude nothing when it comes to supporting Ukraine,” Jonson reflected. “However, at this stage we will not at be able to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces with Swedish Gripen Fighters.”

Jonson met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Thursday.

Last week, US President Joe Biden told G7 leaders that the US will support a joint effort to train Ukrainian pilots on US-made F-16 aircraft. The United Kingdom and the Netherlands have both stated that they intend to provide Ukraine with these F-16 jets.

Lawyers for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich have appealed the latest extension of his pre-trial detention, after a court in Moscow prolonged it by three months on Tuesday.

The decision on the extension of the US journalist's detention to August 30 was appealed on Thursday, according to the Lefortovo court website.

Gershkovich was arrested in Russia in March, in a sign of the Kremlin's clampdown on foreign media outlets since it invaded Ukraine last year.

He is being held in a pre-trial detention center at the notorious Lefortovo prison, where he faces up to 20 years in prison on espionage charges.

The Wall Street Journal has vehemently denied the spying accusations against Gershkovich, who has been designated as wrongfully detained by the US State Department.

CNN's Stephanie Halasz and Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.

Two children aged 3 and 6 are among those injured in the attack on a medical clinic in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Friday, the head of the regional military administration has said.

Regional head Serhii Lysak said two adults were hospitalized with “heavy” injuries.

The Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s office has raised the number of injured to 16, adding that the strike hit a medical and veterinary facility in the city and that “a fire broke out as a result.” 

In a short statement on Telegram the prosecutors office added that “the number of injured is being established. Private houses, multi-apartment buildings have been damaged.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier that one person had died and 15 had been left injured after the bombardment.

Scenes emerged of fires ripping through one of the buildings of the medical facility. The video, posted by a regional military official, also showed smoke billowing out of windows and a totally collapsed roof.

The international medical NGO Médecins Sans Frontières tweeted it was “supporting” Ukrainian emergency services at the scene of the strike.

One of Russia’s top universities has announced it will fund education for veterans of the war in Ukraine and their families.

Nikita Anisimov, the head of the Higher School of Economics (HSE) in Moscow, said the institution "will train participants of the special military operation" — the Kremlin's euphemism for the invasion.

Anisimov added that the university will offer "main educational programs" to the children and close relatives of those who served in the war "at the expense of the university."

The scheme comes on top of the presidential decree that previously introduced a particular quota, reserving 10% of admission places for the children of war participants, according to the statement.

The HSE's decision also allows students from other state universities to transfer, provided they bridge any gaps in academic programs.

In April, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree establishing a fund to provide financial, legal, medical and other aid to soldiers fighting in Ukraine and their families.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday that one person has died and 15 are wounded following an attack on a medical clinic in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.

Zelensky said: "Russian terrorists once again confirm their status of fighters against everything humane and honest."

He added "the shelling aftermath is being eliminated and the victims are being rescued. All necessary services are involved."

Earlier, the head of the regional military administration, Serhii Lysak, wrote on Telegram that Russian forces “have struck a medical facility. There are casualties."

The United States Treasury has sanctioned the head of the Wagner private military group in Mali, Ivan Maslov, as part of its pushback on Wagner expansionism in Africa supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to a press release published Thursday.

The Treasury also confirmed the findings of a CNN investigation into Wagner’s support for the Sudan paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in the current war devastating the country.

A US official, citing US intelligence, told CNN earlier this month that the Biden administration had been informed that Wagner had been trying to ship equipment for use in Ukraine through Mali and falsifying paperwork for the transactions.

The official said at the time that there were no signs yet that Wagner had successfully procured the equipment, but the group had continued working to procure mines, drones, radar and counter-battery systems from contacts in Mali for use in Ukraine.

Maslov is a senior Wagner Group security official who was tasked by Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin and Dmitriy Valeryevich Utkin to lead the Wagner Group’s mercenary units in Mali, according to the Treasury press release. 

Both Prigozhin and Utkin have been sanctioned by the US, the United Kingdom, the European Union and Canada.  

The press release added that Wagner has meddled in and destabilized countries in Africa, committed widespread human rights abuses and appropriated natural resources.  

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.

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.