Putin house attack claim threatens peace talks

Moscow/Kyiv: Peace talks to end the war in Ukraine were dealt a setback after Russia claimed that Ukrainian forces launched a drone strike on one of Vladimir Putin's residences.

Though Ukraine emphatically denied the attack, Russia says it would review its negotiating stance but not quit the negotiations. It has also threatened to retaliate against Ukraine after alleging that nearly 100 drones had targeted one of Putin’s residences.

The threat on Monday was made as United States President Donald Trump tries to broker a peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine, which will enter its fifth year in February. On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov alleged that Ukraine had launched the attack on the Valdai residence of Putin in the Novgorod region in northwestern Russia. The property is 360km north of Moscow.

Lavrov told reporters that Ukraine had launched 91 drones towards the residence. He added that air defence systems shot down the drones and no one was injured. 

The Russian Ministry of Defence said 49 of the drones were shot down over the Bryansk region, one was shot down over the Smolensk region and 41 were shot down over the Novgorod region while en route.

“Such reckless actions will not go unanswered,” Lavrov said. “The targets for retaliatory strikes and the timing of their implementation by the Russian armed forces have been determined.”

Russian officials accused Ukraine and its President Volodymyr Zelensky of carrying out the strike to derail the prospects of a peace agreement.