Russia’s defence ministry published a video Wednesday of a downed drone that it says Ukraine launched at President Vladimir Putin’s residence in north-west Russia this week — a claim Kyiv has denied as a “lie.”
Russia has called it a “terrorist attack” and a “personal attack” against Putin, saying it will toughen its negotiation stance in Ukraine war talks.
Moscow made the allegation shortly after Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with US President Donald Trump in Florida and Kyiv has called it a “fabrication” intended to “manipulate” the peace process.
The European Union has also said the video was an attempt to “derail” peace efforts.
The video, shot at night in the dark, showed a damaged drone lying in snow in a forested area. The ministry said the alleged attack was “targeted, carefully planned and carried out in stages.”
Russia has not said where Putin was at the time, saying the attack was launched on the night of December 28-29 at Putin’s home in the Novgorod region. His residences are normally shrouded in secrecy.
The defence ministry said the attack started around 7:00 p.m. on December 28 and was a “mass” drone launch at Putin’s residence, but said the longtime leader’s home was not damaged.
It also published a video with a man it called a witness, saying he was a local villager from the settlement of Roshchino.
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