Russia-Ukraine updates: Putin says war was ‘unleashed’ on Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping in what was the two leaders' first official contact since January 2022, before Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Xi announced that he will send a special envoy to visit Ukraine and "other countries" to work on a political solution.

"I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine's ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations," Zelenskyy said in a statement on Twitter.

The Chinese government's official position still refuses to call the war an "invasion."

The call between the two leaders is said to have lasted an hour, according to Zelenskyy's office.

"Before the full-scale Russian invasion, China was Ukraine's number one trading partner. I believe that our conversation today will give a powerful impetus to the return, preservation and development of this dynamic at all levels," Zelenskyy said in a statement.

-ABC News' Karson Yiu, Cindy Smith and Will Gretsky

At least two people were killed and 10 injured after a Russian missile hit a Ukrainian museum Tuesday, officials said.

The local history museum is located in the city center of Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region.

"The terrorist country is doing everything to destroy us completely. Our history, our culture, our people," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media while sharing a video that showed the damaged building. "Killing Ukrainians with absolutely barbaric methods."

Russian officials have warned Ukrainians in occupied Kherson that they may be "deported" if they don't accept Russian passports, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said Monday.

"Russia is using passports as a tool in the 'Russification' of the occupied areas, as it did in Donetsk and Luhansk before the February 2022 invasion," the ministry on Twitter.

Residents of Kherson have been warned of penalties for those who don't accept Russian passports by June 1. Some may be removed from the territory or may have their property seized, according to the U.K.

Russia said Sunday that the U.S. has denied visas to Russian journalists who wanted to cover Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's trip to New York.

Lavrov promised that the decision will not be forgotten by their side.

"The country that calls itself the strongest, smartest, most free, fairest has chickened out, has done a silly thing and shown what its sworn assurances on protecting freedom of speech, access to information and so on are worth," he told reporters at the airport before his flight to New York.

"Most importantly, you can be sure: we will not forget, we will not forgive this," the minister told the pool of journalists who have not been granted U.S. visas.

The journalists had planned to cover Lavrov's appearance at the United Nations to mark Russia's chairmanship of the Security Council.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called the U.S.’s decision “outrageous” on Sunday, Interfax, a Russian news agency, reported.

There was no immediate comment from the U.S. State Department about the claim of refused visas, according to AP.

-ABC News’ Anastasia Bagaeva, Edward Szekeres, Natalia Shumskaia