Zelenskyy says accusation that Putin’s residence in Novgorod was attacked by Ukraine is a lie
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed the accusation that Ukraine tried to attack Putin’s residence as a lie, adding that Moscow was preparing the ground to strike government buildings in Kyiv, according to the Reuters news agency.
Zelenskyy has urged the US to react to Russian threats accordingly and has cast the Russian claim as a way of undermining progress in peace talks following the Ukrainian leader’s meeting with Donald Trump yesterday. We will give you more on this as we have it.
Key events
Luke Harding
Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia on Monday of trying to sabotage peace talks and preparing to bomb government buildings after the Kremlin said it had foiled a Ukrainian drone attack on Vladimir Putin’s residence.
Zelenskyy described the Russian claim as “another lie”. He said he was “expecting” some kind of scandal following his two-hour meeting on Sunday with Donald Trump in Florida, where “progress” was made towards ending the conflict.
“They do not want to finish this war,” he said. He warned that a Russian strike on government complexes in the capital was now probable, similar to a bombing in September of the cabinet ministers’ building in central Kyiv.
Earlier, Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, claimed Ukraine had tried to hit Putin’s residence in the Novgorod region, south of St Petersburg. As a result Moscow’s negotiating position would be reviewed, he said.
Some more reported by Russian state media too on the Trump-Putin call.
All of the information we’re getting so far on this call is from the Russian side, from their foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov who gave out certain details earlier.
RIA is reporting Ushakov saying that Trump was “shocked” by the supposed attack and called it “insane”, and that Kyiv’s alleged action would “influence Washington’s approach to working with Zelenskyy”.
So this is what Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said of the attack on Putin’s residence – which Ukraines immediately denounced as a lie by Moscow to undermine peace talks.
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Lavrov claimed that Ukraine had sent 91 drones to attack the presidential residence in Novgorod on Sunday night – all of which were shot down by air defence.
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Due to this attack, Russia is “revising” its position on peace negotiations
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Putin told Trump about the attack in a phone call on Monday, and told the US president Russia was amending its views
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US yet to offer any comment on the supposed attack
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Zelenskyy denied Lavrov’s report immediately and said Putin was using it as “false justification” for more strikes on Kyiv and government buildings
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Lavrov confirmed in his comments that “retaliatory” targets and attack timings had been selected already
There is no independent evidence of this supposed attack from Ukraine on Putin’s northern residence so far – the only information has come from Lavrov. Meanwhile Russia launched a heavy attack on Kyiv just two days ago.
We’re also yet to see any images or visuals of this claimed drone attack on Putin’s residence in Novgorod – which Ushakov said happened on Sunday night after the Trump-Zelenskyy meeting in Florida.
I’ll get the main details from what foreign minister Lavrov is claiming happened to you soon.
No word yet from the White House on this reported drone attack on Putin’s Novgorod residence. The Kremlin says Putin did raise it in his call with Trump. Ukraine’s Zelenskyy has said it’s a complete lie.
Leavitt’s social media post from less than an hour ago only mentioned that the “positive call” had concluded. No readout or further details yet.
Trump was shocked when Putin told him about the drone attack on the presidential residence in Novgorod, Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said.
He reiterated that Putin had told Trump that Russia’s position would be “reviewed” on a number of a positions – “this was stated very clearly”.
Zelenskyy has quickly scotched Russia’s report of a Ukrainian attack on Putin’s residence as “a complete fabrication intended to justify additional attacks against Ukraine, including Kyiv, as well as Russia’s own refusal to take necessary steps to end the war.”
He said he had also discussed the matter with German chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha has also posted on X in the last 20 minutes saying:
Russian manipulations regarding the alleged “attempt to attack Putin’s residence” are fabricated for only one reason: to create a pretext and false justification for Russia’s further attacks against Ukraine, as well as to undermine and impede the peace process.
Usual Russian tactic: accuse the other side of what you are doing or planning yourself.
First, Russia has already struck the Ukrainian government building this year.
Second, Ukraine only strikes legitimate military targets in the Russian territory—in response to Russian strikes at Ukraine.
Third, Russia is the aggressor, and Ukraine is the country that has been attacked and defends itself according to article 51 of the UN Charter. There can be no false equivalence between the aggressor and the country defending itself.
We urge the world to condemn provocative Russian statements aimed at derailing the constructive peace process. Ukraine remains committed to peace efforts led by the United States, with the participation of European partners.”
Putin told Trump he’s revising position after claimed drone attack on presidential residence
The Kremlin says Putin informed Trump about the drone attack in their phone call today, and that this was leading to a change in their position on a peace deal.
Putin told Trump that he still wants to work with the US on a peace deal but the attack had forced a revision of their position, says Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov.
Ukraine has already labelled the supposed attack as “fake” and a “lie”, with Zelenskyy saying Russia has come out with this story to undermine the US-Ukrainian work on a deal to end the war.
Putin and Trump held call day after Zelenskyy meeting
Putin and Trump have had a phone call today– which the White House has described as being “positive”.
Just now, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X: “President Trump has concluded a positive call with President Putin concerning Ukraine.”
Her statement has come just shortly after Russia accused Ukraine of this drone attack on Putin’s presidential residence in northern Russia.
Putin also had a call with Trump the day before Zelenskyy flew into Florida.
Zelenskyy says Russia’s report of this supposed attack, immediately after his positive meeting with Trump, has been done to undermine the progress made in Florida.
Russia was using “dangerous statements” to “undermine” Ukraine-US diplomatic relations, Zelenskyy said.
As a reminder, Trump yesterday had said a peace agreement was 95% there (despite there being no progress on the main issue of territory in the Donbas region).
Some more from Zelenskyy responding to Moscow’s claim that Ukraine attacked Putin’s residence in northern Russia overnight.
The Ukrainian leader warned his people to be on guard for fresh strikes, saying this was “another lie” from Russia now to justify new attacks on Kyiv.
“They’re simply preparing the ground to carry out strikes, probably on the capital and probably on government buildings,” Zelenskyy told journalists.
“Everyone needs to be alert now, absolutely everyone. A strike on the capital may be carried out, especially since this person [Putin]… said they will choose corresponding targets.”
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergio Lavrov, said Russia had chosen targets in Ukraine for “retaliation strikes”.
Zelenskyy says accusation that Putin’s residence in Novgorod was attacked by Ukraine is a lie
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed the accusation that Ukraine tried to attack Putin’s residence as a lie, adding that Moscow was preparing the ground to strike government buildings in Kyiv, according to the Reuters news agency.
Zelenskyy has urged the US to react to Russian threats accordingly and has cast the Russian claim as a way of undermining progress in peace talks following the Ukrainian leader’s meeting with Donald Trump yesterday. We will give you more on this as we have it.
Russia says Ukraine tried to attack Vladimir Putin’s residence with drones
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, has claimed that Ukraine tried to attack Vladimir Putin’s residence in the Novgorod region and so the Kremlin’s negotiating position would now change, Interfax has reported.
He said that Ukraine attacked the Russian president’s state residence with 91 long-range drones on 28-29 December, without offering evidence. “Such reckless actions will not go unanswered,” Lavrov was quoted as having said, adding that all the drones were destroyed by Russian air defences.
The Russian foreign minister said that despite the alleged attack, Moscow intends to continue in the negotiating process to bring an end to the war.
We have not yet been able to independently verify the information in the report.
Speaking after meeting senior Russian military officials on the war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin said Moscow is continuing with its plan to capture Ukrainian regions it announced the annexation of in 2022 and is making steady progress in that effort.
“The goal of liberating the Donbas, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions is being carried out in stages, in accordance with the plan of the special military operation. … The troops are confidently advancing,” Putin said.
The Russian leader also told his army on Monday to press on with a military campaign to take full control of the Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine (Moscow controls about 75% of the wider region).
In 2022, Moscow claimed to have annexed four Ukrainian regions – Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia – which marked the largest forcible takeover of territory in Europe since the second world war. Ukraine responded to the illegal annexations at the time by asking Nato to speed up giving it membership of the US-led defence alliance.
Frances Mao
Frances Mao is a Guardian reporter and live blogger
Putin and the Kremlin continue to trumpet their advances in Ukraine with publicised, performative meetings like the one televised on Russian state broadcasters just now.
But the situation on the ground is far from that as the Institute for the Study of War’s analysts make clear in their latest briefing.
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“Putin and high-ranking Russian military commanders continue to aggrandize tactical details to create the false impression that Ukrainian defenses across the frontline are on the verge of collapse,” write the ISW’s analysts.
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They note that a televised 27 December meeting between Putin and army commanders was likely timed to fall on the eve of Trump and Zelenskyy’s 28 December meeting to influence Trump.
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“Putin, Russian Chief of the General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov, and the GoF commanders made a series of likely exaggerated claims about Russian successes across the battlefield”, claiming to have seized Myrnohrad (east of Pokrovsk), Rodynske (north of Pokrovsk), and Vilne (east of Dobropillya).
The ISW estimated Russian forces were advancing at an average 14 square kilometres per day in 2025, meaning it would take them until April 2029 to seize the rest of the four oblasts at that rate.
“This calculation, however, does not take into account the many obstacles Russian forces would face along the way, such as crossing the Dnipro River, overcoming other water features throughout the oblasts, and seizing the major cities of Zaporizhzhia city (with a pre-war population of about 710,000 people) and Kherson city (with a pre-war population of about 280,000).”
In June, Ukraine and the Council of Europe human rights body signed an agreement which formed the basis for a special tribunal intended to bring to justice senior Russian officials for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
Ukraine has demanded the creation of such a body since Russia’s full-scale invasion was launched in February 2022, accusing Russian soldiers of committing thousands of war crimes.
Putin signs changes into law to let Russia ignore foreign criminal courts
Vladimir Putin has signed changes into Russian law that allows Russia the right to ignore judgments in criminal cases handed down by international courts.
It appears to be in reaction to several initiatives to go after Russian officials and military officers for alleged war crimes in Ukraine.
The international criminal court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant in March 2023 against Vladimir Putin for allegedly illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The warrant obliges the court’s 124 member states to arrest the Russian president and transfer him to The Hague for trial if he sets foot on their territory. The Kremlin says the allegation is false.
Under the new changes signed off by Putin on Monday, Moscow will have the right under its own legislation to ignore rulings in criminal cases taken by foreign courts on behalf of foreign governments.
Rulings issued by international legal bodies whose authority is not based on an international agreement with Russia or a UN security council resolution can also be ignored under the changes
