Images posted on social networks revealed an explosion on the roof of a building known as the Senate Palace where the Presidential House is located.

The Kremlin immediately pointed to the attack on Ukraine, with which it has been at war since February 2022.

The images distributed on the internet cannot be verified.

For Russia, this was a “planned act of terrorism and an attempt on the life of the President of the Russian Federation” and pointed to Ukraine as the major responsible party.

Russia condemns attack on Vladimir Putin with drones targeting the Kremlin

President Volodimir Zelensky denied responsibility for the act, pointing out that his country was fighting on its territory and that they were “defending our cities and towns”.

Ukrainian presidential spokesman Mikhaylo Podolyak suggested Moscow is to blame.

“Reports orchestrated by Russia should be viewed solely as an attempt to prepare background information for a large-scale terrorist attack in Ukraine,” Podolyak said.

What has Russia said about this?

In addition to government responses, former President Dmitry Medvedev called for the physical removal of Zelensky after the attack.

“After today’s terrorist attack, there are no options other than the physical elimination of Zelensky and his clique,” the former president said.

While senior official Vyacheslav Volodin called for the use of weapons to “destroy the terrorist regime in Kiev”, the Daily Mail reported.

While the Commission of Investigation of Russia opened a criminal case for the attack. “The Chief Investigative Department of the Investigative Commission of Russia has opened a criminal case (…) in connection with an attempted attack on the residence of the President of Russia in the Kremlin,” the state agency said in a statement.

international responses

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, for his part, doubts the attribution of the attack on Ukraine, saying he will take “anything that comes out of the Kremlin with a grain of salt”.

Eastern Europe expert Sergey Sumlenny said he believes Russia is responsible.

He cites factors such as the Kremlin quickly confirming the incident and that the video apparently circulating from CCTV came from government-controlled cameras as proof that Russia “wants us to see it”.

However, Samuel Bendett, a researcher and analyst of military unmanned systems at the Center for Naval Analysis’s (CNA) Russian Studies program, has pointed out that the device used is either a Ukrainian UJ-22 or a Chinese-made Mugin-5 drone could be. . . The PD-1 drone model could be another option, he added.

The UJ-22 “has a long range and could potentially reach Moscow,” but at this point it’s not clear where they launched from, Bendett said, emphasizing that much is still unknown.