China trained group of Russian soldiers in 2025 who later went to fight against Ukraine
At the end of 2025, around 200 Russian servicemembers underwent military training in China before some of them returned to participate in Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to a Reuters investigation citing documents and information from three European intelligence services.
Reuters reported that the covert training programme was outlined in a Russian-Chinese agreement signed in Beijing on July 2, 2025, by senior military officials from both countries. The bilingual agreement reportedly focused primarily on drone warfare training and specified that Russian troops would receive instruction at military facilities in Beijing and the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing.
According to the documents reviewed by Reuters, approximately 200 Russian soldiers were scheduled to participate in the programme, and intelligence sources said that roughly that number later completed training in China. The agreement also reportedly provided for hundreds of Chinese servicemembers to receive military training at facilities in Russia.
The training programme is likely to intensify concerns among Western governments over growing military cooperation between China and Russia during Moscow’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
Neither the Russian nor Chinese defence ministries responded to Reuters’ requests for comment regarding the report. China’s Foreign Ministry reiterated Beijing’s official position on the war, stating that China has “consistently maintained an objective and impartial stance” and has worked to promote peace talks regarding what it referred to as the “Ukraine crisis.”
Russia launched a large-scale nuclear forces drills after Belarus exercises
Russia has launched large-scale exercises involving its nuclear forces amid what the Kremlin described as a growing “threat of aggression,” the Russian Defense Ministry announced on May 19.
The drills, which are scheduled to continue through May 21, involve multiple branches of Russia’s military, including the Strategic Missile Forces, the Northern and Pacific fleets, long-range aviation units, and formations from the Leningrad and Central military districts.
According to the ministry, the exercises include preparations for the potential use of nuclear forces as well as test launches of ballistic and cruise missiles at ranges inside Russia. Moscow said the goal of the drills is to improve coordination between military commands, assess combat readiness, and rehearse nuclear “deterrence” operations against what it called a “probable adversary.”
The Russian Defense Ministry said more than 64,000 military personnel are participating in the exercises, along with over 7,800 pieces of military equipment. The drills reportedly involve more than 200 missile launchers, over 140 aircraft, 73 surface warships, and 13 submarines, including eight strategic missile submarines capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
The announcement came one day after Belarus said it had begun joint exercises with Russian forces involving units responsible for the combat use of nuclear weapons. The exercises are expected to further raise tensions between Moscow and the West amid Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry has previously condemned Russia’s deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and the joint nuclear exercises, calling them an “unprecedented challenge” to global security architecture. Kyiv urged international partners to respond firmly to what it described as escalating nuclear threats from Moscow.
Ukraine apologises over drone incidents in Estonia
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi commented on the incident involving a drone that was shot down over Estonia on May 19, saying that Russia continues to redirect Ukrainian drones toward the Baltic region using electronic warfare systems.
According to Tykhyi, Moscow deliberately interferes with drones through electronic warfare while simultaneously intensifying propaganda efforts around such incidents. He apologized to Estonia and Ukraine’s Baltic partners for what he described as unintended consequences.
Tykhyi stressed that Ukraine remains committed to close cooperation between relevant agencies to investigate each case and prevent similar incidents in the future. He added that Ukrainian expert teams are prepared to participate directly in these efforts.
The spokesperson also rejected Russian claims that Baltic countries or Finland have allowed Ukraine to use their airspace for attacks against Russia. Tykhyi said neither Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, nor Finland had ever permitted such activity, and emphasized that Ukraine had never requested permission to do so.
He added that Russia has no right to blame Ukraine, the Baltic states, or Finland “for the consequences of its actions and, more broadly, its war of aggression.”
Russians hit Kramatorsk with a glidebomb injuring six
At least six civilians were injured after Russia carried out an airstrike on the city of Kramatorsk in Donetsk Oblast on the morning of May 19, according to the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office.
Prosecutors said Russian forces struck a residential area of the city at around 05:40 using a FAB-250 aerial bomb equipped with a unified gliding and correction module, which allows the bomb to be guided toward its target from a longer distance.
The attack injured six civilians, including three men aged 43, 45 and 71, as well as three women aged 64, 65 and 67. The victims suffered blast injuries, shrapnel wounds and concussions as a result of the strike.
Kramatorsk, which serves as a major administrative and logistical hub in Ukrainian-controlled parts of Donetsk Oblast, has repeatedly come under Russian missile, drone and aerial bomb attacks throughout the full-scale war.
Russians hit Pryluky in Chernihiv oblast with a ballistic missile: two killed, 17 injured
Russian forces struck the town of Pryluky in Chernihiv Oblast on May 19, killing at least two people and injuring 17 others, according to regional authorities.
Officials believe the attack was carried out using a ballistic missile. Before the strike, Ukraine’s Air Force had warned of a ballistic missile threat and reported an aerial target heading toward Pryluky.
The Chernihiv Oblast Military Administration said the missile struck the center of the town at around 10:00 local time. Among the injured is a 14-year-old child. Medical teams are providing treatment to the victims while emergency crews continue rescue and recovery operations at the scene.
Authorities said one of the city’s businesses was directly hit in the strike. A nearby shopping center, a supermarket and firefighting equipment were also damaged by the blast.
Pryluky, located southeast of Chernihiv, has faced repeated Russian attacks during the full-scale war, despite being situated far from the active front line.