A senior Russian official issued a thinly veiled threat against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, reiterating unproven claims that Ukraine attempted to strike Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence with a drone.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now a member of Russia’s Security Council, accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of “trying to derail the settlement of the conflict” in a post Monday on X, referring to ongoing peace talks to end the war.
“He wants war,” Medvedev continued, referring to Zelensky. “Well, now at least he’ll have to stay in hiding for the rest of his worthless life.”
Russia has continued striking Kyiv even as U.S.-brokered negotiations move forward, fueling doubts about Moscow’s commitment to peace. President Trump has said he believes Putin wants a deal despite the attacks.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia’s negotiating stance is under review, after accusing Ukraine of attempting to strike the presidential residence in northern Russia with 91 long-range drones overnight. Lavrov said all drones were destroyed by Russian air defenses, with no injuries or damage.
Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha said Tuesday that Russia has provided no “plausible evidence” of an attack on Putin’s residence, writing on X, “They won’t, because there is none. No such attack happened.”
“Russia has a long record of false claims — it’s their signature tactic. For instance, Russia claimed it wouldn’t attack Ukraine in the beginning of 2022,” he continued. “They also often accuse others of what they themselves plan to do. Their words should never be taken at face value.”
A day after President Trump and Zelensky met at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach to discuss a draft peace proposal, Putin relayed the accusations to Trump in a phone call. Trump later told reporters he was “very angry” upon hearing the claims.
“I don’t like it; it’s not good. I heard about it this morning. You know who told me about it? President Putin told me about it,” Trump told reporters Monday, when asked about the strike. “Early in the morning, he said he was attacked. That’s no good. It’s no good.”
“It’s a delicate period of time. This is not the right time,” he added, likely referring to ongoing peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. “It’s one thing to be offensive, because [Russia is] offensive, it’s another thing to attack [Putin’s] house. It’s not the right time to do any of that. … I was very angry about it.”
Asked if there’s evidence of the attack, the commander in chief replied: “Well, we’ll find out. You’re saying maybe the attack didn’t take place? That’s possible, I guess, but President Putin told me this morning.”
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