By REUTERS
Russia has accused the US of being behind what it says was a drone attack on the Kremlin intended to kill Vladimir Putin.
Speaking to journalists on Thursday, the Kremlin’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said Ukraine was merely implementing US plans “dictated” by Washington but did not provide any evidence to support the allegations.
Peskov said: “We are well aware that decisions on such actions, on such terrorist attacks, are not made in Kyiv. But in Washington. And Kyiv is doing what it is told to do. It is very important that in Washington they understand that we know this, and understand how dangerous such direct participation in the conflict is.”
Volodymyr Zelenskiy and other Ukrainian officials have denied Russian allegations that Ukraine was involved in a drone attack on the Kremlin that was intended to kill Putin.
Dramatic video footage on Wednesday showed two flying objects approaching the Kremlin and one hitting the rooftop of the Kremlin Senate, an 18th-century mansion within the grounds of the president’s official residence.
Putin was not in the building at the time of the attack, Peskov said on Wednesday.
The White House said it was aware of the reports concerning the drone strike on the Kremlin but was “unable to confirm the authenticity of them at this time”.
“I don’t want to get into speculation from here about what happened. But we are – we are indeed aware of the reports,” the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said at a news conference Wednesday. Jean-Pierre added: “The United States is certainly not encouraging or enabling Ukraine to strike beyond its borders.”
Throughout the 14-month conflict, the Kremlin has repeatedly asserted, without providing evidence, that the West started the war in Ukraine. Russian officials have also blamed Western nations for orchestrating attacks inside Russia.
The Russian ambassador to the UK previously claimed, without providing evidence, that British special forces were involved in a Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow’s Black Sea fleet last October.
Several hawkish senior officials called on Putin to take retaliatory action shortly after Wednesday’s strike. The former Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, said the attack on the Kremlin left Moscow with no options but to “eliminate” Zelenskiy and his “clique” in Kyiv, while Vyacheslav Volodin, the chair of the State Duma, said new weapons should be used to “destroy the Kyiv terrorist regime”.
However, there are early signs that the Kremlin is keen to project a sense of normality. Peskov said on Thursday that Putin would not give a special presidential address in connection with the attack and that the “usual, working” situation was in place. Peskov added that Putin was planning to work from the Kremlin on Thursday.