June 2, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

Ukraine will be inspecting civilian bomb shelters across the country after three people died in Kyiv earlier this week when they were unable to access a shelter during a Russian missile barrage.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said the deaths have caused an "obviously strong reaction" and orders are in place to check shelters in the capital and elsewhere.

Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said he'd been instructed to commence nationwide inspections and that the State Emergency Service of Ukraine and the National Police are already working.

"Any violations found must be properly recorded, and those responsible must be brought to justice," he said on Facebook.

The numbers: After a month of regular night-time Russian attacks on Kyiv, the city's authorities have disclosed that 92,000 people used the city's metro stations as shelters in May. They said that 46 underground stations operate as shelters around the clock. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated US support for Ukraine and said Russia’s war in Ukraine has been a "strategic failure" that has diminished the country's influence and interests "for years to come." 

“Where Putin aimed to project strength, he’s revealed weakness,” Blinken said in Helsinki, Finland. 

Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he understands his country cannot become a member of NATO — as Finland recently has — while it is still at war.

If you are just joining us, here is the latest you need to know on Russia's war in Ukraine:

President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he understands that Ukraine cannot become a member of NATO while it is still at war.

The alliance's treaty includes Article 5, a collective defense provision that pledges members to come to the assistance of any state that is under attack.

"Give me an example of one NATO country which is in a state of war with Russia right now; or which NATO country has Russian troops on its territory," Zelensky said.

Both Russia and Ukraine have reported casualties in the ongoing shelling in southern Ukraine.

Nine people were injured in shelling in the Russian-occupied port city of Berdiansk on the Sea of Azov on Friday, according to Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-appointed local official, who claimed that the strike was "carried out by the [Armed Forces of Ukraine] militants."

The city lies along the coast from Mariupol, an area that is believed to be among the sites Ukraine will attempt to reclaim in its counteroffensive. It is deep in Russian-controlled territory, around 100 kilometers (about 62 miles) from the front line. That means that if Ukraine was behind the alleged strike, the use of Storm Shadow missiles would be a likely option.

Separately, four civilians were injured and two women were killed in the settlement of Komyshuvakha, which is south-east of the city of Zaporizhzhia, according to Yurii Malashko, head of Zaporizhzhia region military administration.

Zaporizhzhia region police say they have documented "189 hostile attacks" on civilian settlements in the last two days, adding that residential buildings and households were damaged.

The “Akhmat” group of Chechen special forces had launched an offensive in the Marinka direction in eastern Ukraine, the Russian defense ministry said on Friday.

On Wednesday, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov had said that the Chechen special forces were preparing for the offensive amid intensifying attacks on the Russian border region of Belgorod. 

“According to the order, the fighters of the Chechen units must begin active combat operations and liberate a number of settlements,” he said.

Some background: The city of Marinka, which is now in ruins, has been on the front lines since the beginning of the invasion, with fighting at close-quarters among the rubble continuing almost daily. The Ukrainian military has said there are Chechen units at various points along the front lines in Donetsk region. 

Kadyrov leads sizeable paramilitary forces that, while formally a part of Russian security structures, have personal loyalty to him. During a visit to the Kremlin in March, the Chechen leader told Putin his forces in Ukraine will help Russia "fight to the victorious end."

Nine people were injured in shelling in the Russian-occupied port city of Berdiansk on Friday, according to a Russian-appointed local official. 

“Information about the dead is being clarified,” Vladimir Rogov said.

The strike on "peaceful Berdiansk was carried out by the [Armed Forces of Ukraine] militants," Rogov had said earlier.

Some background: Berdiansk is a port city on Sea of Azov on Ukraine's southern coast. It has been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the conflict. Its port has previously been targeted by Ukrainian forces. The city lies along the coast from Mariupol, an area that is believed to be among the sites Ukraine will attempt to reclaim in its counteroffensive.

Berdiansk is deep in Russian-controlled territory, around 100 kilometers (about 62 miles) from the front line. That means that if Ukraine was behind the alleged strike, the use of Storm Shadow missiles would be a likely option.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has berated the US for “interfering” in South Africa’s affairs and has asked America’s envoy to the country to “mind his own business,” following allegations that South Africa supplied arms and ammunition to Russia last year.

In an explosive revelation last month, US ambassador to South Africa Reuben Brigety told South African media he was confident that its government “uploaded weapons and ammunition” onto a Russian cargo vessel “between the 6th to the 8th of December 2022.”

Lavrov, who is on an African tour to strengthen his country’s bilateral relations with the continent, addressed Brigety’s accusations at a news conference in Mozambique Wednesday, claiming that Russia’s relations with South Africa comply with international law.

“If the American or any other overseas ambassador thought he or she saw something, they should mind their own business and not get involved in other people’s affairs,” Russia’s foreign affairs ministry quoted Lavrov to have said while responding to questions at the Wednesday press conference in the Mozambican capital Maputo.

Some background: The South African government has come under intense criticism for its stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has routinely abstained from votes condemning Russia at the United Nations General Assembly.

While South African leadership has repeatedly stated that they are neutral in the conflict and have frequently called for a negotiated settlement, their actions have come under increasing scrutiny from Western powers.

In February of this year, South Africa convened naval war games off its coast including both the Russian and Chinese military.

Later this year, South Africa will host the BRICS summit, a grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Russian President Vladimir Putin was invited to that summit.

CNN's David McKenzie contributed to this post.

A Russian special forces unit has been deployed to Russia’s Belgorod border region because of “partisan” activity, Ukraine’s National Resistance Center – an official body — said Friday.

It comes after the Russian Ministry of Defense released a video showing Russian forces purportedly hitting targets in Belgorod. Russian combat aircraft "delivered nine strikes against retreating Ukrainian formations and enemy reserves," the ministry added. Earlier, this week the Kremlin said it is concerned about the situation in Belgorod.

Recent developments: Shelling in the Belgorod region, killed two women, the region's governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a Telegram post Friday.

He blamed Ukrainian forces for the shelling, saying they had fired at a road in the village of Maslova Pristan, in the Shebekino district. Ukraine has not commented on the claim.

Russia’s drone and missile strikes on Kyiv continued into Friday as air raid sirens sounded across Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russian officials reported attacks on several regions including Kursk and Belgorod.

Here are the latest developments: