Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/MIKHAIL METZEL
Topics: News, US News, Russia, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin
Gerrard Kaonga
Topics: News, US News, Russia, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin
Russia has accused Ukraine of launching an extensive attack on Vladimir Putin’s presidential residence and has released video footage showcasing one of the alleged downed drones.
Russian officials have claimed that Ukraine has targeted Vladimir Putin’s state residence in Russia’s northwestern Novgorod region in a recent attack.
Moscow has said that Ukraine used as many as 91 long-range unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) but noted that all of them were shot down.
Senior officer, Major-General Alexander Romanenkov said that Ukraine used 91 drones and launched them from the Sumy and Chernihiv regions in a ‘thoroughly planned’ attack.
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He reiterated that this attack was thwarted and it concluded with no damage done and no injuries.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also issued a statement. Speaking on Telegram, he said: "Given the final degeneration of the criminal Kyiv regime, which has switched to a policy of state terrorism, Russia's negotiating position will be revised.”
However, Lavrov added that Russia does not intend to completely withdraw from negotiations with the US.
Ukraine has firmly denied these allegations and argued that Russia has shared no evidence to support these accusations. Kyiv has gone as far to say that Russia invented this attack to stall talks of ending the war in Ukraine.
According to a Reuters report, Officials in several Western countries have cast doubt on Russia's version of events and questioned whether there was any attack.
However, on Wednesday (December 31) Moscow released video footage of a what it claimed was a downed drone from the attack.
The video, released by Moscow, showed Russian serviceman standing next to fragments of a device which was said to be a downed Ukraine Chaklun-V drone carrying a 6-kg explosive device which had not detonated.
It is not clear where Putin was at the time of the alleged attack and Reuters could not confirm the location or the date of the video footage provided by Russia.
On December 30, Donald Trump spoke to reporters and informed them that Putin himself told him about the alleged attack.
While greeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said: “Yeah, I don't, I don't like it - it's not good. I heard about it this morning. Do you know who told me about it? President Putin told me about it early in the morning - he said he was attacked.
“It's no good, it's no good. Don't forget, you know, the Tomahawks? I stopped the Tomahawks. I didn't want that, because we're talking about, you know, it's a delicate period of time. This is not the right time.
“It's one thing to be offensive because they were offensive. It's another thing to attack his house. It's not the right time to do any of that and can't do it - and I learned about it from President Putin today. I was very angry about it.”