Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow, Putin vows to 'punish aggressors'

Russia announced the thwarting of a "large-scale" Ukrainian drone attack on the capital, Moscow, early Wednesday morning, and accused Western intelligence services of involvement in the Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region, as Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to "take revenge on the aggressors."

Russian officials said Ukraine launched a large-scale drone attack on Russia on Monday before air defense units destroyed three of them about 38 kilometers (24 miles) south of the Kremlin, and 15 over the border region of Bryansk.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced early this morning that Russian air defenses had shot down 10 drones launched by Kiev towards his city, in "one of the largest attacks" targeting the Russian capital since the start of the war.

Three attack aircraft heading towards Moscow were shot down over the city of Podolsk in the Moscow region, Sobyanin said on Telegram, adding that preliminary data showed "no damage or casualties at the site where the wreckage fell."

There were no reports of casualties or damage following the drone attack on the Bryansk border region in southwestern Russia, the region's governor, Alexander Bogomaz, wrote on Telegram.

Russia's state news agency also reported that air defenses destroyed two drones over the Tula region, which borders the Moscow region to the north.

Separately, Vasily Golubev, governor of the Rostov region in southwestern Russia, said air defense forces had destroyed a Ukrainian missile over the region, with no reports of casualties.

It was not clear how many drones and missiles Ukraine fired. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. Ukraine has not yet commented.

Western involvement

For its part, the Russian newspaper Izvestia quoted today the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service as saying that intelligence agencies from the United States, Britain and Poland participated in preparing for Ukraine’s incursion into the Russian Kursk region.

Ukraine launched its surprise attack on the Russian region on August 6, Russia's largest invasion since World War II, in an operation that Kiev says is aimed at creating a buffer zone and wearing down Russia's war machine.

"The preparation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operation in the Kursk region was carried out with the participation of the American, British and Polish intelligence services," Izvestia quoted the Foreign Intelligence Service as saying.

"The participating units underwent combat coordination at training centers in Britain and Germany," she added. The White House said earlier that the United States had not received prior notice from Kiev that it was planning a military incursion into Kursk.

As Russia continues its advance in eastern Ukraine, Kyiv said yesterday that Ukrainian forces had captured 1,263 square kilometers of Kursk territory, including 93 towns.

Kyiv has intensified its air strikes on Russian territory in recent months, saying their goal is to destroy infrastructure essential to Moscow’s war effort. It also says its attacks are in response to ongoing Russian strikes on Ukrainian territory.

Putin threatens

In this atmosphere, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov yesterday inspected Chechen forces and volunteers preparing to fight Ukraine, in Putin's first visit to the North Caucasus republic in 13 years.

The unannounced visit to the Muslim-majority republic, which is part of Russia, comes as Moscow fights to drive Ukrainian forces out of the Kursk region two weeks after they stormed the border in Russia's biggest invasion since World War II.

"As long as we have guys like you, we will be absolutely invincible," Putin told troops at Russia's Special Forces University in Gudermes, Chechnya, according to a transcript on the Kremlin website.

"Shooting in a shooting range here is one thing, and putting your life and health at risk is another. But there is an internal need to defend the homeland and the courage to make such a decision," he added.

Referring to the sudden Ukrainian incursion into Russian territory and the wider Donbas region in southeastern Ukraine, which is partially controlled by Russian forces, Putin said: “Just as we fought terrorists, today we must fight those who commit crimes in the Kursk region, in the Donbas, and we will punish the criminals. There is no doubt about that.”

Kadyrov told Putin in a separate meeting yesterday that Chechnya has sent more than 47,000 troops to fight in Ukraine since the start of the war, including about 19,000 volunteers.

The United States imposed sanctions on Kadyrov in 2020 over alleged human rights abuses and in 2022 over his mobilization of Chechen forces to fight in Ukraine.

Source: Agencies