Ukraine Denies Attack Over Kremlin As Russia Claims Kyiv Attempted Putin’s Assassination | Top Points

Purported footage of a drone strike targeting the Kremlin on viral on social media as Russia claimed it foiled an assassination attempt by Ukraine on President Vladimir Putin.

New Delhi: Russia on Wednesday claimed that it had foiled an assassination bid by Ukraine on President Vladimir Putin. Ukraine, however denied any involvement saying Russia could use the claim for further escalation of the war.

“Last night, the Kiev regime attempted a drone strike against the residence of the President of Russia at the Kremlin. We consider these actions a premeditated terrorist attack and an assassination attempt targeting the President,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia said in a statement.

Russia warns of retaliation

Russia reserves the right to retaliate “anywhere and anytime it deems necessary” in response to the drone attack by Ukraine on President Vladimir Putin’s residence, the Kremlin said, according to a RT report.

Putin wasn’t in the Kremlin at the time and was at his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti. The Kremlin said Russian military and security forces stopped the drones before they could strike. Nobody was hurt, it added.

Videos show smoke over Kremlin

Purported footage of a Ukrainian drone strike targeting the Kremlin has surfaced on a local Telegram channel. The video shows plumes of white smoke rising into the night sky over the Grand Kremlin Palace, a 19th century building serving as the official working residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, RT reported.

BREAKING: The Kremlin has reportedly been attacked by at least 2 drones.

Russia now claims that the attacks were an assassination attempt on President Vladimir Putin.

The Two drones (One which can be seen in the video below) exploded behind the Kremlin walls.

Putin’s Office… pic.twitter.com/snC4KP05Bj

— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) May 3, 2023

#WATCH | Russia today alleged that there were attempts by Ukraine to assassinate President Putin, saying it was a “terrorist attack” while claiming it shot down drones over the residence of Putin

(Video: Russia’s RT news) pic.twitter.com/6b7jkeYluT

— ANI (@ANI) May 3, 2023

There was no independent verification of the reported attack on the Kremlin, which Russia authorities said occurred overnight but presented no evidence to support it. Questions also arose as to why it took the Kremlin hours to report the incident and why videos of it also surfaced that late in the day.

The Kremlin’s website said debris from the drones fell on the grounds of the Moscow landmark without damage, according to a report by news agency The Associated Press.

Moscow bans drone flights

Shortly before the news about the alleged attack broke, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin issued a ban on using drones in the Russian capital, with an exception for drones launched by authorities.

Sobyanin didn’t offer any reason for the ban, saying only that it would prevent the “illegal use of drones that can hinder the work of law enforcement”, according to AP.

Ukraine denies attack

Ukraine presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak denied any involvement. “Ukraine has nothing to do with drone attacks on the Kremlin,” he said. He said the claims would provide a pretext for Russia “to justify massive strikes on Ukrainian cities, on the civilian population, on infrastructure facilities” in coming days.

“As for the drones over the Kremlin. It’s all predictable… Russia is clearly preparing a large-scale terrorist attack. That’s why it first detains a large allegedly subversive group in Crimea. And then it demonstrates “drones over the Kremlin”. First of all, Ukraine wages an exclusively defensive war and does not attack targets on the territory of the Russian Federation. What for? This does not solve any military issue. But it gives RF grounds to justify its attacks on civilians,” Mykhailo Podolyak said in a tweet.

“Secondly, we are watching with interest the growing number of mishaps and incidents that are taking place in different parts of RF. The emergence of unidentified unmanned aerial vehicles at energy facilities or on Kremlin’s territory can only indicate the guerilla activities of local resistance forces. As you know, drones can be bought at any military store. The loss of power control over the country by Putin’s clan is obvious. But on the other hand, Russia has repeatedly talked about its total control over the air. In a word, something is happening in RF, but definitely without Ukraine’s drones over the Kremlin,” Mykhailo Podolyak said.

As for the drones over the Kremlin. It’s all predictable… Russia is clearly preparing a large-scale terrorist attack. That’s why it first detains a large allegedly subversive group in Crimea. And then it demonstrates “drones over the Kremlin”. First of all, Ukraine wages an…

— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) May 3, 2023

The purported drone attack would be a significant escalation in the 14-month conflict, with Ukraine taking the war to the heart of Russian power. The alleged attack immediately prompted calls in Russia from pro-Kremlin figures in Russia to carry out assassinations on senior leadership in Ukraine.

(With inputs from Agencies)