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Moscow city’s mayor, Sergey Sobyanin, claimed on January 1 that the Russian forces intercepted multiple Ukrainian long-range drone strikes on New Year’s Eve, prompting retaliation, although no loss to life or damage to infrastructure was reported.

In a social media post, Sobyanin wrote: “The Russian air defence forces have destroyed one UAV flying toward Moscow, just as Russian President Vladimir Putin began delivering his traditional New Year’s Eve address”.

More drones were intercepted shortly after midnight, while approximately seven other kamikaze drones were intercepted between 2 am and 4 am on Thursday, Sobyanin said, adding that emergency services specialists are working at the crash sites.

He said the attacks forced temporary flight disruptions at the Domodedovo airport as a precautionary measure. Officials in Moscow also confirmed that at least one man, in his late 50s, suffered shrapnel wounds to his back and arm in an attack.

The incident is subsequent to the Russian President’s allegations of kamikaze drone attacks on his residence in the Novgorod region on December 28-29, which Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov condemned as an act of “state terrorism”. Moscow promised a “non-diplomatic” response to the attack.

 

Also Read: Putin alleges attack on residence by Ukrainian drones

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected the allegations, calling them a pretext to launch more attacks on Ukraine and stall the US-brokered peace talks.

The alleged attack triggered reactions from the international community, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing his concern and countries in the West criticising these “dangerous escalations”.  

Ukrainian armed forces, like their Russian counterparts, have constantly targeted territories across the border in recent months, causing massive damage to infrastructure, including the energy sector.

In response, multiple attacks from Moscow during the past few months have severely impacted the energy infrastructure in Ukraine, causing power outages and leaving thousands without energy supplies.