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Russia has accused Ukraine of attempting an overnight drone attack on the Kremlin with the aim of killing President Vladimir Putin, Russian state media reported.
The allegation, made on Wednesday (May 3), claimed that two drones, which were disabled by Russian security forces, attempted to attack the Kremlin with the intention of killing the Russian president, Reuters reported. The Kremlin has said that the attack was unable to cause any casualties and that President Vladimir Putin was safe, and continued to work with his schedule unchanged.
Iuliia Mendel, a former spokesperson for Volodymyr Zelenskyy tweeted: “Another threat from the Kremlin. At the beginning of the war, it made several attempts to assassinate Volodymyr Zelenskiy and kept silent about this. How much trust do we have in Russian information about alleged Ukrainian drone attacks on the Kremlin? After years of lies and provocations?”
Ukraine has officially denied any involvement, Reuters reported.
“The Kremlin has assessed these actions as a planned terrorist act and an assassination attempt on the president on the eve of Victory Day, the May 9 Parade,” state news outlet RIA reported.
Victory Day marks the Soviet army’s triumph over Nazi Germany in 1945. It is celebrated across Russia, with cities holding parades and other festivities. This year, fearing a Ukrainian attack, celebrations have been cancelled in multiple regions. Some experts have said that Ukraine might begin its counter offensive on May 9, due to the date’s symbolic value to Russians. The reported attack on Kremlin might be a part of the build up.
Russia has been strong in its criticism of Ukraine for striking at the heart of Moscow. It has said that it deems the attack “an act of terrorism” and retains the right to respond “when and where it sees fit,” AP reported.
Some commentators have claimed that Russia might itself have staged this attack to create justification for the use of even greater force in Ukraine. A senior Ukrainian presidential official said that an attack on the Kremlin would “change nothing on the battlefield” and would probably “provoke Russia to take ‘more radical” actions.”
Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent of The Wall Street Journal, tweeted that the kind of drone used “could only have been launched from within Moscow or its vicinity. Not the kind of drone that can fly all the way from Ukraine”.
After 434 days since the invasion first began, the war drags on, with both sides inflicting pain and casualties but not making significant headway. Currently, Russia holds parts of Eastern Ukraine with fierce fighting under way between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
Kyiv is currently preparing for a counteroffensive. Front lines are abuzz with vehicle movement and artillery strikes, with regular explosions hitting vital Russian targets in occupied areas, CNN reported. Moscow, on the other hand, is preparing for Ukraine’s inevitable push, with a vast network of trenches and defensive positions dotting the Russian frontline.
Currently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has travelled to Helsinki for talks with the prime ministers of four Nordic countries as part of his effort to secure greater firepower for his country’s armed forces.
