Kremlin Accuses Ukraine Of Assassination Attempt Of Putin
The Kremlin accuses the US of giving Kyiv the order to attack Russia
The last 48 hours have seen the Kremlin accuse Ukraine of an attempted assassination attempt on Putin, followed by an allegation that Kyiv takes its orders from Washington D.C.! This was all uttered without a shred of evidence and video footage just happened to record the two drones hovering over the Kremlin on the evening of 2 May 2023. Apparently people were on the dome and there was some damage to it, yet one wonders how it got through the air defences?
Is the Kremlin looking to escalate so that they can justify their actions (claiming defence)? The US and Ukraine have suggested that Russia is lying about the claims that they were behind the attack.
Analysts have suggested that this was a false-flag incident where Russia seeks escalation by blaming Ukraine for attacking them to further the domestic propaganda. Putin needs the Russians to believe that Russia is in ‘danger’ from Ukraine, and have also planted the idea that the US control Ukraine and ordered them to attack Russia. Both Ukraine and the US dismissed the allegations, with Zelenskyy stating that they do not attack Russian territory, and only defend their own lands.
Zelenskyy has been busy being a politician, visiting Finland, and the Netherlands and giving speeches and signing joint declarations. He states that Ukraine cannot be in NATO while there is a war, but expects membership after the war. What they need is a map towards membership so they can work on ensuring the relevant criteria is met.
Day 433 (2 May)
A Russian media outlet asked the US Speaker of the House (McCarthy) if they were going to cut aid to Ukraine as he did not support the current policy. They were shutdown as McCarthy stated that the US supports Ukraine and that Russia should leave Ukraine immediately.
Patriot systems arrive in Ukraine, and Germany has said that ammunition for the Gepard system will arrive soon, and reminded Ukraine that no weapons should be used to target Russian territory.
Ukraine has set up a registry for people who are missing in the war. This will allow people to apply for pensions and benefits for the loss of the main breadwinner of a family.
In Berlin, the Russian opposition party has signed a declaration to end the war in Ukraine and Putin’s party. I’m not sure what good that will do except to let the world know that there is hope for Russia if the current government is ousted.
Businesses are still trading with Russia, and they have been criticised on a global scale. Jameson whisky and Beefeater gin was about to resume exports to Russia, but did a u-turn and halted the process, and said that exiting Russia was challenging and could not give a date when it could happen.
Japan has supported Ukraine with humanitarian aid but its neutrality means it cannot supply weapons. Therefore, Ukraine has requested equipment that would jam the frequency of the drones.
Ukraine seeks to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which is a free trade agreement between, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. The UK will be the first new member to join, and China, Taiwan, Ecuador, Uruguay and Costa Rica have applied to join as well.
Day 434 (3 May)
Zelenskyy makes an unannounced visit to Finland for a Ukrainian -Nordic summit. He met with leaders from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland.
Russia claims that Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin when two drones hovered over the Kremlin overnight. Ukraine immediately denied that they had anything to do with the drone attack.
We don't attack Putin or Moscow. We fight on our territory. We are defending a villages and cities. (Zelenskyy)
The US had nothing to do with this. We don't even know what happened here.
But I can assure you the US had no role in it whatsoever.(John Kirby, spokesman for the White House National Security)
The ‘attack’ appeared to be a false-flag as the drones did little damage, the incident was clearly caught on camera for public viewing, and managed to get through several layers of air defences in an area that would be heavily guarded. It seems a little suspect that drones weren’t intercepted and that no one spotted them.
We know very well that decisions about such actions, about such terrorist acts are made not in Kyiv, but in Washington. Can you have only does what it is told to do.(Dmitry Peskov spokesman for the Kremlin)
Zelenskyy then arrived in the Netherlands later in the day as he is due to give a speech in The Hague while visiting the ICC to discuss the setting up of a special tribunal to try the to date, 6,000 war crimes committed by Russia. He met with Mark Rutte, the Dutch Prime Minister and the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander de Croo
.
A declaration signed by Belgium, and the Netherlands stated their support for holding Russia to account for alleged war crimes, and to continue to support and help strengthen the Ukrainian military and the ability to defend themselves.
Day 435 (4 May)
The main news is that Russia is now accusing the US of being involved in the drone attack, claiming that they gave the order for Kyiv to attack the Kremlin. The US moved swiftly to deny any such action, and the Russians offered no evidence of their claims.
Russia has said they will consider a response to the attack, one that many consider a false flag to allow Russia to spread propaganda in Russia to gain support for the war. Russia continued the launch missile attacks on Ukraine across Kyiv and Odesa.
Zelenskyy will visit Germany 13-14 May 2023, at the invitation of Scholz.
Zelenskyy gives a speech in The Hague, ‘No Peace Without Justice’ and visits the ICC. He called for a special tribunal to be set up to try the alleged Russian war crimes.
The OTP Bank of Hungary, has been declared an ‘International sponsor of war’ by Ukraine as it has continued to operate in Russia.
Ukraine continues the corruption clean-up and have detained a mayor in Odesa accused of embezzlement. Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov is accused of embezzling $2.5 million of funds.
Negotiations for the Black Sea Grain Initiative will be held on 5 May 2023, as the current agreement (stalled by Russia) is due to expire on 18 May 2023. Apparently, Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine will meet in Istanbul to discuss the extension of the deal.
Drones that were used to attack Ukraine had ‘For Moscow’ and ‘For the Kremlin’ written on them.
Ukraine has created a 50 kg book, which contains details of Russian crimes in Ukraine and is called Crime without Punishment. It's a spin given to various European entities, such as the EU in parliament.
More Russian soldiers are seeking ways to avoid having to fight in Ukraine, and reports claimed that 3,200 applications have been submitted under the project '“I want to live”. This is where Russian soldiers can find a safe way to surrender so that they don’t have to fight on the frontline.