Russia: Ukraine drone attacks ‘not possible’ without US and NATO, who are complicit

Russia said on Tuesday that Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian territory would “not be possible” without US and NATO help, after reporting downing five UAVs near Moscow.

“Such attacks would not have been possible without the help of the US and its NATO allies to the Kyiv regime, that continue to [supply] it with weapons, including Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), train drone operators, and provide the intelligence needed to commit such crimes, including from civilian and military satellites,” the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

It added: “All this makes Washington and its satellites accomplices in the preparation and implementation of terrorist acts planned and carried out by Kyiv with Western money using Western weapons.”

The Kremlin had said that the Ukrainian drones which attacked the New Moscow urban district in the capital were destroyed. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “All these drones were destroyed and neutralized by the corresponding systems. This is an absolutely obvious fact,” according to state news agency TASS.

Earlier, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that the city was attacked by several Ukrainian drones on Tuesday morning and all of them were shot down by air defenses, with no one hurt in the attacks.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said four drones were destroyed by air defense systems and one was suppressed by electronic warfare capabilities.

Ukraine typically does not address drone attacks on Russia. However, commenting on the drone attack on Moscow, Ukraine’s military intelligence spokesperson Andriy Yusov said: “If we talk about Moscow, we traditionally do not comment on it. But it happens. If, for example, the Rashist 45th Brigade of special forces is engaged in sabotage in the Ukrainian rear, then this means that something might fly to Moscow. It happens,” state media outlet Ukrainska Pravda cited him as saying.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova labeled the drone attack as an “act of terrorism” by Kyiv. “An attempt by the Kiev regime to attack an area where civilian infrastructure facilities are located, including an airport which, by the way, also receives foreign flights is yet another terrorist attack,” she said on Telegram.

Zakharova added: “The global community should realize that the US, the UK, France – permanent members of the UN Security Council – are financing a terrorist regime.”