By Tim Lister, Daria Tarasova-Markina
(NCS) — Russia has repeated claims that Ukraine launched an enormous drone attack on Monday focusing on one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residences, with the navy providing new feedback on the alleged attack.
The Russian protection ministry additionally revealed video of a soldier standing over some drone wreckage.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected the alleged drone attack as “a complete fabrication” by Russia.
US President Donald Trump stated Putin advised him of the alleged attack in a telephone name early Monday. Trump indicated that he took Putin at his phrase earlier than acknowledging that the attack could not have occurred.
Others have additionally solid doubt on the Russian claim.
The European Union’s international coverage chief Kaja Kallas stated on Wednesday that it was a “deliberate distraction.”
“Moscow aims to derail real progress towards peace by Ukraine and its Western partners,” she wrote on X.
The protection ministry in Moscow stated Wednesday that 91 drones had been launched from northern Ukraine in opposition to Putin’s residence close to Valdai within the Novgorod area of northwestern Russia.
More than half had been intercepted a number of hundred kilometers away, the ministry stated, with out specifying the way it knew they have been destined for Valdai. The relaxation had been intercepted over Novgorod between 3 a.m. and eight:30 a.m. native time on Monday, based on the ministry.
The ministry revealed a map purporting to indicate the trail of the drones and the place they’d been introduced down.
It additionally launched a video of a masked soldier standing at midnight subsequent to the wreckage of a drone, saying its high-explosive warhead was “filled with a large number of striking elements” and was designed to attack civilian targets.
The date and placement of the video couldn’t be independently verified.
Another video revealed by the ministry featured a person described as dwelling near the presidential residence who stated he was woken by the noise.
“It was the first time in my life I had heard the sound of missiles,” stated Igor Bolshakov. “I heard it coming from the direction of (Lake Valdai).”
The closely fortified Valdai presidential residence is located on the shores of Lake Valdai.
No social media video has been posted of the drones being intercepted, which is uncommon when a considerable attack is carried out removed from Russia’s border with Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated the attack was aimed toward “sabotaging President Trump’s efforts to facilitate a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict.”
Trump has been attempting to advance peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, but there are nonetheless extensive variations between the 2 sides.
Some Western governments and impartial analysts have solid doubt on the claim.
“Almost a day passed and Russia still hasn’t provided any plausible evidence to its accusations of Ukraine’s alleged ‘attack on Putin’s residence,’” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated Tuesday.
“And they won’t. Because there’s none. No such attack happened,” Sybiha posted on X.
Asked Tuesday if Ukraine had spoken with the Trump administration following Russia’s claims, Zelensky advised NCS in a information briefing: “Our negotiating team got in touch with the American team. They talked through the details, and we understand that it’s fake. And, of course, our partners can always use their tech to check that it was fake.”
Zelensky indicated Tuesday that talks have been persevering with on different elements of a possible settlement, together with future safety ensures. He stated Ukraine had mentioned the likelihood of an American troop deployment with Trump and with representatives of the Coalition of the Willing. He careworn that any determination to deploy American troops to Ukraine rests with the US president.
Others solid doubt on Russian claims
The US ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, solid doubt on Russia’s claims of a drone attack in an interview with “Fox Business” on Tuesday. “It’s unclear whether it actually happened,” he stated. “We’re going to get to the bottom of the intelligence.”
Earlier Tuesday, a supply near French President Emmanuel Macron stated that “there is no solid evidence to corroborate the serious accusations made by the Russian authorities, even after cross-checking information with our partners.”
Lithuania, a NATO member bordering northwestern Russia, known as Moscow’s claim a false flag operation aimed toward justifying doable strikes on Ukraine.
“The circumstances of this alleged strike do not conform to the pattern of observed evidence when Ukrainian forces conduct strikes into Russia,” commented the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), noting the absence of video of air protection operations or statements from native and regional Russian authorities.
The impartial Russian media outlet Agentstvo famous Tuesday that the top of the Valdai district had held a stay broadcast at 5 p.m. native time Monday, when he didn’t point out any attack.
Agentstvo stated it was additionally unable to search out stories of any drone assaults within the public social media channels of the 14,000-strong city of Valdai, situated 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the residence.
On a media name Tuesday, Peskov was requested whether or not there was any bodily proof of the attack.
“I don’t think there needs to be any kind of ‘evidence’ here, given that such a massive drone raid took place and that, thanks to the well‑coordinated work of our air defenses, they were shot down and neutralized,” Peskov stated.
“Zelensky himself is trying to deny it, and many Western media outlets, playing along with the Kyiv regime, are starting to push the line that this supposedly never happened. But these are insane, insane assertions.”
Putin knowledgeable Trump in regards to the alleged drone attack in a name between the 2 leaders on Monday, and he advised the US president that Russia was reviewing its place on peace negotiations because of this, based on Russian state radio, citing a name with Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov.
Asked in regards to the alleged Ukrainian attack forward of a gathering with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump advised reporters Monday, “I don’t like it. It’s not good.”
Trump stated that when Putin advised him in regards to the alleged attack, “I was very angry about it.”
In response to a reporter’s query, Trump added: “You’re saying maybe the attack didn’t take place. It’s possible, too, I guess. But President Putin told me this morning it did.”
Asked if US intelligence companies had proof of such an attack, Trump stated: “We’ll find out.”
The-NCS-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
NCS’s Billy Stockwell, Victoria Butenko, Pierre Bairin and Lauren Kent contributed to this report.