'Drone attack' on Putin residence puts peace in peril

Hopes for a breakthrough in Ukraine's war were dented on Monday after Russia accused Ukraine of attempting to strike President Vladimir Putin's residence in northern Russia, an allegation Kyiv dismissed as baseless and designed to derail peace talks.

The claim, made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, said Ukraine deployed 91 long-range drones on December 28-29 targeting Putin's residence in the Novgorod region west of Moscow. He said all drones were destroyed by Russian air defences and no damage occurred.

Lavrov labelled the attack "state terrorism" and warned that Russian forces had already identified targets for retaliatory strikes. Lavrov offered no evidence for his assertions, and it remained unclear where Putin was at the time.

Kyiv strongly rejected the accusation. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia was fabricating the story to create a pretext for attacks on government buildings in Kyiv and to undermine progress in US-Ukrainian talks on ending the war.

"Another round of lies from the Russian Federation," Zelenskiy said via WhatsApp. "If there is no scandal between us and America, and we are making progress, for them it is a failure." Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called on world leaders to condemn Russia's claims.

The alleged attack coincided with high-level discussions on a potential agreement to end hostilities. On Sunday, US President Donald Trump met Zelenskiy in Florida, describing the talks as "getting a lot closer, maybe very close" to an accord, while acknowledging unresolved "thorny" territorial issues.

Trump, speaking after a phone call with Putin, expressed anger over the reported attack. "It's one thing to be offensive. It's another thing to attack his house. It's not the right time to do any of that," he said, but added that the conversation remained productive, with hopes to resolve remaining issues and achieve peace.

Key sticking points in the 20-point peace proposal include control over Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, currently held by Russian forces, and the fate of the Donbas region. Russia currently occupies about a fifth of Ukraine, including Crimea, annexed in 2014.

Russia also claims Donbas as well as Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, which are internationally recognised as Ukrainian territory. Russia has demanded Ukrainian troop withdrawals from parts of Donetsk. Ukraine insists fighting halt along existing frontlines.

Despite the tensions, Putin struck a defiant tone on Monday, instructing his generals to press the offensive in Zaporizhzhia, which Moscow controls around 75% of.

Colonel-General Mikhail Teplinsky, commander of Russia's Dnieper grouping, reported forces were just 15 km from the region's largest city. "In the near future, it is necessary to continue the offensive, together with the East grouping to liberate Zaporizhzhia," Putin said.

REUTERS