Trump Disputes Putin Residence Drone Strike: Washington Questions Moscow's '91-Drone' Narrative

Moscow claims an assassination attempt involving 91 drones, but Washington isn't buying it. U.S. President Donald Trump has publicly doubted the Kremlin's account of a massive Ukrainian strike targeting Vladimir Putin's residence, labeling the report as inaccurate.

Direct Denial on Air Force One

"I don't believe that strike happened,"Trump told reporters on Sunday while flying from Florida back to Washington, D.C. He suggested that while an event might have occurred in the general vicinity, it had no connection to the alleged drone swarm targeting Putin's compound in the Novgorod region. This direct contradiction puts the U.S. at odds with the latest Kremlin messaging.

Moscow Threatens to Pivot Negotiating Stance

The Russian government accused Kyiv of the attempted strike on Monday, citing the use of 91 long-range attack drones. In response, Moscow stated it would "review its negotiating position" in ongoing talks with the U.S. intended to end the Ukraine war. This development signals a potential stall in diplomatic breakthroughs that many had hoped were imminent.

Western intelligence and Kyiv officials have consistently disputed the Russian narrative. Satellite imagery from Planet Labs has been under intense scrutiny, with analysts looking for any sign of the massive debris or damage consistent with nearly a hundred drones. So far, the evidence presented by the Kremlin remains largely unverified.