Ukraine has denied Russian allegations that it attempted to strike President Vladimir Putin's residence in a mass drone attack on Monday. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed that air defences shot down 91 drones, labelling the incident an act of “state terrorism”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed the accusation as “typical Russian lies”, accusing Moscow of trying to undermine diplomatic progress following a bilateral meeting between Ukrainian officials and US President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on Sunday.
The Russian claim appears aimed at influencing Trump, who has been pushing for a peace deal. Trump commented on the alleged attack, saying, “It’s one thing to be offensive, because they’re offensive. It’s another thing to attack his house. It’s not the right time to do any of that.”
The allegation comes as Trump insists a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine is “95% done”. Zelenskyy is seeking to maintain US support, while Russia signals readiness for negotiations but appears unwilling to abandon its maximalist war aims.
