Overview
- A video released by Russia’s Defence Ministry shows Admiral Igor Kostyukov giving a recovered drone navigation controller to a U.S. military attaché in Moscow.
- Russia says decrypted data from the device proves a Novgorod target was a Putin residence, a claim not independently verified.
- A CIA assessment briefed to President Trump found the drones were aimed at a nearby military facility, not a presidential residence, prompting Trump to publicly shift toward skepticism.
- Ukraine and Western officials reject Moscow’s account as disinformation and request verification, while Russia says it intercepted 91 drones without damage or casualties.
- The dispute is pressuring U.S.-led negotiations over the war, with separate Russian-installed claims of a deadly strike in Khorly still lacking independent confirmation.