Defense Ministry reports bombing hours after Kiev records third wave of drone offensive in 24 hours. Ukraine denies involvement. Attacks raise questions about Russian anti-aircraft systems.
The Russian capital, Moscow, was the target of several drone strikes in the early hours of Tuesday (5/30), the Russian Defense Ministry reported, hours after Kiev suffered air strikes by Russia for the third time in 24 hours.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the war has been waged mainly on Ukrainian soil, although Moscow has reported some attacks on its territory, even defining one of them as an assassination attempt on President Vladimir Putin.
The drone strikes targeted some of Moscow’s most affluent areas, including a region in the west of the capital where Putin and the Russian elite have residences.
According to Moscow Mayor Serguei Sobyanin, the attacks caused “insignificant damage to several buildings,” and two people were injured and sought medical assistance. In addition, two apartment blocks were even evacuated for a few hours. No deaths were reported.
Kiev denies involvement
The Defense Ministry in Moscow said that all the drones were intercepted, and added that “this morning, the Kiev regime carried out a terrorist drone attack on targets in the city of Moscow.”
Russian MP Maxim Ivanov described the attack as the most serious since World War II, saying that no citizen can now avoid “the new reality.” “Either you defeat the enemy hand in hand with our motherland, or the indelible stain of cowardice, collaboration and betrayal will engulf your family,” he said.
If confirmed that Ukraine was responsible for the attack, it would be one of the strongest and boldest to occur in Russia since the war began more than 15 months ago. The recent attacks have raised questions about the effectiveness of Russia’s air defense systems.
Ukraine’s presidential aide, Mykhailo Podoliak, denied direct involvement by the country in the attacks on Moscow. However, Podoliak said, “We are happy to watch.” And he predicted more attacks.
Deaths in Kiev
Ukraine reported that four people have died in the country following the attacks by Russia on Tuesday, which left 34 injured, including two children.
In the capital, Ukrainian defense forces say they have shot down more than 20 Iranian-made Shahed drones.
Russia has attacked the Ukrainian capital 17 times this month, using drones or missiles. Most of the attacks have been carried out at night, in an apparent attempt to undermine the Ukrainians’ resolve to fight.
President Volodimir Zelenski has said that Patriot anti-missile systems, supplied by the United States, are achieving a 100 percent interception rate. “Terror will be defeated,” he said in his evening address on Monday.
War of versions
In an interview with DW, Marina Miron, a senior researcher at King’s College in London, said that the Moscow attack could be “a spoofed operation, meaning that Russian intelligence services most likely” could be responsible “for the drone strike.” According to the researcher, the attack could serve to “reinforce Russia’s narrative and the need to continue the so-called ‘special military operation.'”
Another possibility, according to Miron, would be the version of the Ukrainian military intelligence leadership, which spoke of a “response by Ukraine to recent drone strikes on Kiev.”
According to the researcher, it will be difficult to get “clarity” on the developments due to the fact that both sides have “a narrative to push.”
Miron further pointed out that drones have been playing an important role in the conflict. “For the Russians, it’s a way to weaken Ukraine’s air defense. And for the Ukrainians, it’s good to use drones because they don’t have as much ammunition.”
Counteroffensive
Ukraine has been promising a counteroffensive with Western weaponry to try to drive the Russians out of territories occupied since the beginning of the conflict.
According to Ukrainian military sources, on the front lines in the east of the country, Russian troops and motorized units have even replaced units of mercenaries from the Wagner group in the city of Bakhmut – the main focus of the fighting for months.
Moscow says it is open to resuming peace talks with the Ukrainians, saying mediation by partners such as Brazil and China is welcome. Ukraine, for its part, says the withdrawal of Russian troops from the country is the only way to end the war.