Russia accuses Ukraine of attempting to kill President Putin with drones, vows retaliation

Russia has accused Ukraine of attacking the Kremlin with drones in a failed attempt to kill President Vladimir Putin, vowing retaliation for the “terrorist attack.”

Moscow said on Wednesday two drones were used in the alleged attack on Putin’s residence in the Kremlin’s citadel overnight, adding that the drones were disabled by electronic defenses.

A Kremlin statement called the incident a "terrorist attack" by Kiev ahead of Russia’s most important holiday on May 9. 

"We regard these actions as a planned terrorist act and an attempt on the president's life, carried out on the eve of Victory Day, the May 9 Parade, at which the presence of foreign guests is also planned," it said.

It added that fragments of the drones were scattered in the Kremlin grounds, but there were no injuries or damage.

"The Russian side reserves the right to take retaliatory measures where and when it sees fit," the Kremlin added.

Separately, the speaker of Russia's parliament demanded the use of "weapons capable of stopping and destroying the Kiev terrorist regime" in response to the alleged attack on Kremlin.

In a statement posted on Telegram, Vyacheslav Volodin said that Russia should not negotiate with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after the purported attack.

Ukraine denies drone attack against Kremlin  

However, Ukraine denied any involvement in the alleged drone operation.

"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 … Ukraine wages an exclusively defensive war and does not attack targets on the territory of the Russian Federation.”

He suggested the attack was "staged" by Moscow, adding, "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."

Kiev and some central and eastern Ukrainian regions have announced air alerts following the Russian statement accusing Ukraine of attacking the Kremlin.

The alleged targeting came after several days of what appeared to be sabotage attacks in Russia. Ukraine has followed a line of not claiming responsibility for such attacks.

Oil depots on fire

On Wednesday, oil depots were ablaze in both southern Russia and Ukraine. Scores of firefighters battled a huge fire that Russian authorities blamed on a Ukrainian drone crashing into an oil terminal on Russia's side of its bridge to Crimea.

A fuel depot in Ukraine was also set on fire after a suspected Russian drone strike on the central city of Kropyvnytskyi.

Drone strike sparks huge fire at Crimea fuel depot

A drone strike has led to a massive fire at a fuel storage facility in the Crimean port city of Sevastopol, its governor says.

An administrative building in Ukraine's southern Dnipropetrovsk region was also reportedly hit by a drone and set on fire.

The attacks come ahead of Ukraine's planned spring counter-offensive.

Kiev has said it is readying for a major counter-offensive to push back Russian forces over a year into the war.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of Russia's Wagner Group, said Ukraine's promised counteroffensive has already begun, with heightened activity along the front line.

Prigozhin said in a statement published by his press service on Telegram that the “active phase” of the counter-offensive would begin in the coming days.

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