On May 3, the press service of the Russian presidential administration announced that last night Ukrainian drones attacked the residence of Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. It is alleged that two vehicles were disabled by radar systems and crashed on the territory of the Kremlin, while no one was injured.
“We regard these actions as a planned terrorist act and an attempt on the president, carried out on the eve of Victory Day, the May 9 Parade, at which the presence of foreign guests is also planned. <…> The Russian side reserves the right to take retaliatory measures where and when it sees fit.”
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the president was not in the Kremlin at the time of the attack. Putin is in his suburban residence Novo-Ogaryovo.
A video has surfaced on social media claiming to show a drone attack. The footage shows how a flying object explodes at the flagpole above the Senate Palace. You can also see two people climbing the stairs to the dome of the palace.
Later, the TVC channel published new footage of the attack, reporting that the first drone exploded over the dome of the Senate Palace, after which a fire started on the roof. It happened at about 2:27 Moscow time. The attack of the second drone was recorded at 2:43 am.
The video published by TVC showed a clock tower. In one case, the hands show a little over two hours and you can see how an explosion occurs at the flagpole on the dome of the Senate Palace and a fire breaks out.
In the second video, the clock shows at about a quarter to three and you can see how the object flies to the dome of the palace and explodes, a little before reaching the flagpole.
Ukrainian presidential spokesman Sergei Nikiforov told the BBC that Ukraine had nothing to do with the alleged drone attack and called Moscow's statements escalating the situation ahead of May 9.
“We have no information about the so-called night attacks on the Kremlin, but, as President [Vladimir] Zelensky has repeatedly stated, Ukraine directs all available forces and means to liberate its own territories, and not to attack others.”
Mikhail Podolyak, an adviser to the Office of the Ukrainian President, also denies Ukraine's involvement in a possible attack.
“Russia is clearly preparing a large-scale terrorist act. <…> Ukraine is waging an exclusively defensive war and does not attack objects on the territory of the Russian Federation. For what? This does not solve any military problem. But it gives Russia grounds to justify its attacks on civilians.”
At the same time, Podolyak said that "local resistance forces" could be behind the attack.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has announced that starting May 3, the city will ban the launch of unmanned aerial vehicles, with the exception of those used by the authorities.
“The decision was made to prevent unauthorized use of UAVs, which may complicate the work of law enforcement agencies. I remind you that the unauthorized launch of a UAV is an offense and entails administrative and criminal liability.”
The ban on launching drones is already in effect in more than 30 regions of Russia.
Russian propagandists, politicians and Z-channels, reacting to reports of drones near the Kremlin, called for more active attacks on Ukraine and strikes on the residence or plane of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.