After claiming that nearly 100 drones targeted one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residences, Russia has threatened to retaliate against Ukraine.
The threat on Monday was made as United States President Donald Trump tries to broker a peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine, which will enter its fifth year in February.
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What has Russia claimed?
Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, claimed on Monday that Ukraine had attacked one of Putin’s residences in the Novgorod region of northwest Russia. The property is 360 kilometers (225 miles) north of Moscow.
Lavrov told reporters that Ukraine had launched 91 drones towards the residence. He added that no one was hurt when the drones were down by air defense systems.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, 41 drones were shot down while on their way over the Novgorod region, 41 were shot down over the Bryansk region, and one was over the Smolensk region.
“Such reckless actions will not go unanswered”, Lavrov said. The Russian armed forces have chosen the targets for retaliatory strikes and when to carry them out.
Russian officials accused Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of carrying out the strike, which threatened to undermine a peace deal.
In an apparent reference to Zelenskyy, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev wrote on X: “The stinking Kiev b**tard is trying to derail the settlement of the conflict. He desires war. He’ll at least now have to spend the rest of his useless life in a hiding place.
Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov said the strike took place on Sunday “practically immediately after” talks were held in Florida between Trump and Zelenskyy on ending Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Trump and Zelenskyy had echoed their optimism following the meeting, claiming that a Russian-Ukraine peace deal was “close.”
Putin hasn’t yet made any official comments about the attack. It is unclear where Putin was at the time of the attack, but he was holding meetings in the Kremlin on Saturday and Monday.
What has Ukraine done to date?
Zelenskyy has vehemently refuted Russia’s claim that Ukraine attacked one of Putin’s residences.
“Russia is at it again, using dangerous statements to undermine all achievements of our shared diplomatic efforts with President Trump’s team”, Zelenskyy wrote in an X post on Monday.
This alleged “residence strike” story is a complete fabrication meant to justify additional attacks on Ukraine, including Kyiv, and Russia’s own inability to put an end to the conflict, according to the article.
Andrii Sybiha, the foreign minister of Ukraine, said the accusations were meant to stifle the talks.
In a post on X, Sybiha said the claim was intended “to create a pretext and false justification for Russia’s further attacks against Ukraine, as well as to undermine and impede the peace process”.
Russia hasn’t provided any credible proof of its accusations of Ukraine’s alleged “attack on Putin’s residence,” according to Sybiha in another post on Tuesday. And they won’t, either. Because there’s none. There was no such attack.
Trump’s response to this:
Trump appeared to accept the Russian version of events on Monday when he told reporters: “It’s one thing to be offensive. Another way to attack his home is. None of that is appropriate at this time. And I learned about it from President Putin today. I felt a lot of anger for it.
Trump responded, “We’ll find out,” when reporters inquired whether US intelligence agencies had any information on the alleged attack.
Congressman Don Bacon, a member of Trump’s Republican Party, criticised the president for accepting the Russian account of events without assessing the facts.
“President Trump and his team should establish the facts before putting their allies in the shoes of blame.” In an X-post, Bacon described Putin as a well-known boldface liar.
How have other world leaders reacted?
Other leaders appeared to accept the allegations made by Trump, just like them.
The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a statement on Monday that it had condemned the Russian Federation’s president’s residence’s attempt to attack His Excellency Vladimir Putin and denounced the deplorable attack and the threat it poses to security and stability.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in an X post on Tuesday: “Deeply concerned by reports of the targeting of the residence of the President of the Russian Federation”.
Modi argued that the US’s ongoing diplomatic dialogue is the “most viable path” to peace, adding that it is “most viable.” We urge everyone involved to keep their attention on these endeavors and steer clear of any derogatory behaviors.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also condemned the alleged attack.
“Pakistan condemns the alleged abuse of His Excellency Vladimir Putin’s residence, the Russian Federation’s President. A vile act like this poses a serious threat to international peace, security, and stability, especially as peace efforts are in progress, Sharif wrote on X.
“Pakistan expresses its solidarity with the President of the Russian Federation, and with the government and people of Russia”.
Have residences under Putin previously been attacked?
Russia has previously claimed that Ukrainians have attacked Putin’s offices, including his official residence and main workplace.
In May 2023, Moscow alleged that Ukraine had deployed two drones to attack Putin’s residence in the Kremlin citadel but said its forces had disabled the drones. Kyiv denied any involvement.
Russia claimed on December 25, 2024, that it had intercepted and destroyed a Ukrainian drone that was also targeted by the Kremlin. Kyiv again denied responsibility.
In contrast, Ukraine has claimed that Ukraine has attacked Kyiv and other Ukrainian government buildings.
A government building in Kyiv, which is the country’s cabinet’s home, was damaged in September by a Russian drone attack, according to the Ukrainian military. Plumes of smoke were seen emerging from the building. Russia claimed that all of its actions had been directed at Ukrainian military installations.
What will Russia do in the interim?
While Russia has not outright threatened to end the peace talks, Moscow said it would realign its position in the talks.
According to Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, “the diplomatic consequence will be to strengthen the Russian Federation’s negotiating position.”
Maria Zakharova, a spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, warned that Moscow’s response “would not be diplomatic.” Indeed, it has warned that it plans to hit back militarily but has given no details of how or when it might do this.
Will the US-led peace talks be stymied by this?
Trump told reporters that Moscow and Kyiv were “closer than ever” to a peace deal after their “terrific” meeting with Zelenskyy on Sunday at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida.
But Trump has made this claim several times before. After Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow in April, Trump claimed that Russia and Ukraine were “very close to a deal.”
After discussions with Zelenskyy and the leaders of France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and NATO, Trump also stated on December 15 that Russia and Ukraine were “closer than ever” to a deal.
However, observers and analysts said the issue of territorial concessions remains a major sticking point. In accordance with Trump’s 28-point peace plan for Ukraine, which he unveiled in November, Russia ceded significant amounts of land after nearly four years of conflict. This is a line that Ukraine will not cross, according to Selenskyy on numerous occasions.
Most analysts are sceptical that any progress has been made on this point and said the latest accusations against Ukraine will probably have little effect. At this point, according to analyst at King’s College London, “I don’t think there is anything to derail.”
According to her, the Ukraine-Russian peace process is “not going well” due to disagreements over crucial issues.
“Trump has repeatedly claimed that a peace deal is close without sustainable agreement”, Keir Giles, a Russian military expert at the London think tank Chatham House, told Al Jazeera this month.
As Ukraine’s military is weakened by desertions, casualties, and declining military aid, Russia has occupied nearly 20% of eastern Ukraine and has slowly grown in territory. In 2014, Moscow annexed the Crimean Peninsula of Ukraine.
According to Nathalie Tocci, director of the Rome-based think tank Istituto Affari Internazionali (Institute of International Affairs), “it’s probably impossible for Ukrainians to voluntarily leave these regions without seeing a withdrawal of Russian forces on the other side.”
Source: Aljazeera
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