Ukraine denies Kremlin drone attack that Russia says was aimed at Vladimir Putin
Volodymyr Zelensky lands in the Netherlands as Moscow calls for his ‘elimination’ over an alleged drone attack on the Kremlin, and hawks call for a nuclear response.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has landed in the Netherlands amid claims and counter-claims over an alleged drone attack on the Kremlin, which Moscow claims was a Ukrainian attempt on President Vladimir Putin’s life.
Mr Zelensky flew into Holland just hours after Finland TV reported he would prolong his visit there after Moscow called for his “elimination” over the incident and hawks called for a nuclear response.
Mr Zelensky is expected to give a speech in The Hague titled “No peace without justice” and visit the International Criminal Court. He will also meet with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, according to the ANP news agency.
It is his first visit to the country and follows a summit with the four Nordic prime ministers in Helsinki, where he denied that Kyiv was behind the attempt on the Kremlin.
“We don’t attack Putin, or Moscow, we fight on our territory,” he said. “Russia has no victories. [Putin] can no longer motivate his society, and he can’t just send his troops to their death any more. Now he needs to somehow motivate his people.”
However Finnish TV has reported that Mr Zelensky would remain in Finland longer than planned, rather than returning to Ukraine immediately after the summit.
The decision comes as Russian hardliners urge retaliatory strikes on Kyiv and
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of the Security Council, said Russia should respond by “eliminating” Mr Zelensky.
Russia said two drones targeted Putin’s Kremlin residence at night, calling it a Ukrainian “terrorist attack” ahead of its most important holiday on May 9.
Video images showed a small blast above the Kremlin Senate building overlooking Red Square as what appeared to be a drone was destroyed.
“Ukraine has nothing to do with drone attacks on the Kremlin,” presidential spokesman Mikhaylo Podolyak said.
“Ukraine does not attack the Kremlin because, firstly, that does not solve any military aims.” He suggested the attack was “staged” by Moscow.
But Mr Podolyak retorted: “Such staged reports by Russia should be considered solely as an attempt to prepare an information background for a large-scale terrorist attack on Ukraine.”
Vyacheslav Volodin, Speaker of the Russian parliament and one of Putin’s closest allies, said MPs would “demand the use of weapons that are capable of destroying Kyiv’s terrorist regime,” the London Times reports. While he didn’t specify what weapons should be used, Mr Putin and senior officials have frequently threatened to deploy nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
Gulagu.net, a Russian human rights website with sources inside the security services, said orders had been issued to prepare Tu-22M strategic bombers for possible attacks against Ukrainian government buildings in Kyiv. It said its source did not rule out the use of nuclear missiles, adding: “Everything is very serious and it is unclear how it will end.”
Kyiv has said it is readying for a major counter-offensive to push back Moscow’s forces over a year into their invasion.
Mr Podolyak said attacking the Kremlin would be “extremely disadvantageous from the point of view of preparing our offensive measures” and would only serve to “provoke Russia to even more radical actions”.
“Two unmanned vehicles were aimed at the Kremlin … the devices were put out of action,” the Kremlin said in a statement, adding that this had happened during the night between Tuesday and Wednesday.
The remnants of the downed drones fell inside the Kremlin but did not injure anyone, the statement added.
It said the operation was “a planned terrorist act and an attempt on the life of the President of the Russian Federation”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Mr Putin was working at his residence near Moscow on Wednesday and would still take part in a scheduled World War II Victory Day parade on Red Square next week as planned.
Moscow’s mayor announced a ban on unauthorised drone flights over the Russian capital.
In a statement, mayor Sergei Sobyanin said drone flights would be prohibited unless a special permit had been obtained from “government authorities”.
The Kremlin news came as Ukraine prepared for a fresh offensive against Russian troops that has been months in planning.
In possible signs that preparations are being stepped up, the frontline city of Kherson in southern Ukraine announced a long curfew for residents and sabotage acts behind Russian lines intensified.
Ukraine tried to strike at the Kremlin at night. It happened at about 3 o'clock in the morning. Two drones were reportedly aimed at the residence of Vladimir Putin. Russian president was not injured, the Kremlin said.- Russian media. (Not a joke) pic.twitter.com/cl7HP9Dcai
— Special Kherson Cat ðŸˆðŸ‡ºðŸ‡¦ (@bayraktar_1love) May 3, 2023
Kherson, which was retaken by Ukrainian troops in November, will be under curfew from Friday evening until Monday morning.
Regional officials said this was “for law enforcement officers to do their job”, but similar long curfews have also been used in the past for troop and arms movements.
“During these 58 hours, it is forbidden to move on the streets of the city. The city will also be closed for entry and exit,” the head of Kherson’s regional military administration, Oleksandr Prokudin, said on Telegram.
He advised residents to stock up on food and medicine and said people could go for short walks near their houses or visit shops but should carry identity documents with them at all times.
The curfew announcement came as officials said three people were killed and five injured in a Russian strike on Kherson’s only working hypermarket on Wednesday.
Kherson was captured by Russian troops last year in the first days of the invasion and remained under Russian occupation until November 2022.
After a sustained campaign of sabotage attacks behind Russian lines, Russian forces withdrew from the city.
They crossed to the eastern side of the Dnipro River which now delineates part of the front line in southern Ukraine.
The curfew announcement came as officials in Russia said they were dealing with a major fire at a fuel depot close to the bridge to Russian-annexed Crimea – the second such incident in just a few days.
A source in the emergency services was quoted by TASS news agency as saying that the fire had been caused by a drone.
An explosion also caused a freight train to derail in a southern Russian region bordering Ukraine on Tuesday, also the second such incident in just two days.
Ukraine says it has been preparing for months for a counteroffensive aimed at repelling Russian forces from the territory they currently hold in the east and south.
Meanwhile in Finland, NATO’s newest member, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was on a surprise visit to take part in a summit with the leaders of the five Nordic nations which have been key providers of military aid.
“In order to be in NATO and support alliances to gain support, fundamental diplomatic work must be done. Ukraine is doing it today,” Daria Zarivna, Ukraine’s presidential communications adviser, wrote on Telegram.
AFP
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