Tag: kremlin?
Putin blames US for ‘assassination bid in Kremlin’ as despot blitzes Ukraine’s capital Kyiv with drone strikes
RUSSIA has blitzed Kyiv in revenge what they say was an assassination attempt on Vladimir Putin.
Residents in Ukraine’s capital were hit with spasms of gunfire and explosions last night.
An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over Kyiv[/caption]
Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital[/caption]
It comes after the Kremlin was hit by two drones on Wednesday[/caption]
The strikes started just after 8 pm and lasted around 20 minutes.
It comes after Moscow claimed the United States was behind the alleged attack on the Kremlin on Wednesday.
Footage showed a flying object exploding in flames overnight above the fortress in central Moscow – where the president has his office and an apartment.
Russia has since accused the US of being a direct participant in the war, intent on inflicting a “strategic defeat” on Moscow.
Washington denies this, saying it is arming Kyiv to defend itself and retake illegally seized land.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said: “We certainly don’t dictate to them the terms by which they defend themselves, or the operations they conduct.”
Ukraine’s president Zelensky earlier denied his country attacked Russia or Putin.
“We don’t attack Putin or Moscow. We fight on our territory. We are defending our villages and cities,” he said.
But Putin allies reacted to the alleged attack with alarming calls for revenge.
Russian authorities – who have launched a terrorism probe – claim they downed two unmanned aerial vehicles aimed at the presidential complex, where Putin is known to increasingly live during the war.
Extraordinary footage appeared to show the moment a drone exploded over the Senate Palace, with flames and smoke seen coming from the 18th-century dome at 2.27am.
Grandstands set up for the Victory Day parade on May 9 can be seen in Red Square below, in front of the fortress walls.
A second blast was seen over the rooftops at 2.43am.
Residents of the nearby Stalinist House on the river embankment said they “saw sparks in the sky and people with flashlights near the Kremlin wall after the thunderclaps”.
The Kremlin said two drones had been used in the alleged attack, but were disabled by Russian electronic defences.
British security officials believe the attack was a “false flag” operation carried out by Russia to distract Ukraine from its counteroffensive and rack up generate support back home.
Experts from the Institute for the Study of War think-tank said: “Russia likely staged this attack in an attempt to bring the war home to a Russian domestic audience and set conditions for a wider societal mobilisation.”
Wheat rallies as Kremlin drone attack casts doubt on Black Sea grain deal
EU warns Twitter over disinformation after Musk policy shifts found to boost Kremlin propaganda
Twitter was only confirmed yesterday as one of 19 major tech platforms subject to centralized oversight by the European Union’s executive starting this fall, when so-called very large online platforms (VLOPs) are expected to be compliant with the Digital Services Act (DSA). But the Commission has not wasted any time warning the Elon Musk-owned social […]
EU warns Twitter over disinformation after Musk policy shifts found to boost Kremlin propaganda by Natasha Lomas originally published on TechCrunch
Kremlin officials told to get rid of their iPhones, or give them to “the kids”
Russian publication Kommersant reports that employees of the Kremlin’s internal political bloc – the Russian presidential administration’s domestic policy, public projects, State Council, and IT departments – were informed that they must get rid of their iPhones before April. Sergei Kiriyenko, first deputy head of Russia’s presidential administration, made the…
Putin’s armoured motorcade heads to Kremlin in early hours ahead of major national address a year after Ukraine invaded
VLADIMIR Putin’s armoured motorcade was spotted heading to Kremlin early in the morning just hours before his major address to the nation.
Footage shows the vehicle at 1 am local time heading to Moscow just before Mad Vlad is expected to deliver a speech to Russia’s federal assembly to mark the one-year anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine.
Putin’s armoured motorcade heading to Kremlin[/caption]
The Russian leader is expected to address the nation on Tuesday[/caption]
Putin will deliver a speech to mark the anniversary of the invasion[/caption]
The dictator will update Russia’s elite and deliver a speech to members of both houses of parliament and to military commanders as well as soldiers.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state television: “At such a crucial and very complicated juncture in our development, our lives, everyone is waiting for a message in the hope of hearing an assessment of what is happening, an assessment of the special military operation.”
Putin will also give his analysis of the international situation and outline his vision of Russia’s development after the West imposed sweeping sanctions on it, the Kremlin said.
The speech is due to begin at 9 GMT in central Moscow.
The Kremlin is also planning a celebratory concert at the Luzhniki Stadium the following day.
A source from Russia’s parliament confirmed to RIA Novosti that a rally event on February 22,is expected to be attended by 200,000 people, including Putin.
The date marks exactly one year since Russia recognised two breakaway Ukrainian regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent states.
It was a key step before Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine on February 24 last year.
Putin cancelled his addresses to the nation in September and December – fuelling speculation about the dictator’s future.
In his last major speech, he spoke from Moscow’s Red Square as he celebrated breaking international law to annex four regions of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the world holds its breath ahead of the looming anniversary of the invasion amid fears of a new onslaught on Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow previously warned that diplomats are working on something to make sure events in the West are “not the only ones to gain the world’s attention“.
Russia is believed to be plotting an attack across two new fronts – pushing into eastern and southern Ukraine.
Ukrainian defenders are bracing for an assault that could include 1,800 tanks, 3,950 armoured vehicles, 400 fighter jets and 300 helicopters incoming from Russia – as well as 500,000 soldiers.
It comes as Ukraine warned Putin had put his nuclear forces on high alert in a bid to “blackmail” the West.
US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv for an unannounced summit while he was expected to be in Poland.
He met with Ukraine’s hero president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and the two of them embraced near a memorial dedicated to dead Ukrainian servicemen.
The US President vowed Washington will stand with Kyiv for “as long as it takes.”