Overview
- Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed about 91 Ukrainian drones targeted the Valdai estate and were all destroyed, with no reported injuries or damage.
- Independent analysts report no public evidence of an attack and highlight contradictions in Moscow’s accounts, noting the estate’s heavy air defenses and the absence of typical open-source traces.
- Russia’s Defense Ministry previously cited far fewer drones, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to present evidence, saying any debris would be a military matter.
- Ukraine categorically denied the accusation, with President Volodymyr Zelensky calling it a lie and officials urging other countries not to accept Russia’s account.
- US President Donald Trump said Putin informed him by phone and criticized the timing for peace efforts, later adding it was possible no attack occurred while saying he believes Putin.