Attack On Kremlin: Main Versions For Now
51- 4.05.2023, 8:10
- 31,222
A daring attack by the AFU or a move by the oligarchs?
Putin's press service has reported that the AFU allegedly struck the Kremlin during the night of May 3. The dome of the Senate Palace was damaged as a result.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denied Kyiv's involvement in the attack on the Kremlin.
Who then could be behind the attack? The Charter97.org website has compiled the main theories at the moment.
Attack Under False Flag
The American Institute for the Study of War believes that Russia probably launched the attack on the Kremlin itself, trying to bring the war closer to Russia's internal audience and prepare the ground for a broader mobilization of society.
They offer several arguments. First, Russian authorities have recently taken steps to strengthen Russia's air defence capabilities, particularly within Moscow itself. It is therefore highly unlikely that two drones could have penetrated several layers of air defence.
Second, the Kremlin's "immediate, concerted and coordinated response" to the incident indicates that the attack was prepared internally.
ISW believes that Russia staged the incident shortly before Victory Day on May 9 in order to present the war to its domestic audience as existential.
Putin's Fear of Parade
Russia has massively cancelled parades on May 9. However, cancelling the Red Square parade would be a sign of Putin's weakness. It was precisely to have a formal reason not to hold the parade, believes Ukrainian political analyst Vladimir Fesenko, that the Russian Federation might have attacked the Kremlin.
"Putin is afraid of parades. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was once assassinated during a parade. Last year Moscow abolished an air parade and now Putin may be afraid of the parade altogether. Nobody knows what will happen. Therefore, he needs a pretext to cancel it," the Ukrainian political analyst believes.
Move by Russian Oligarchs
The leader of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, David Arahamia, voiced his version of a drone attack on Moscow.
"The attack on the Kremlin was carried out on the collective order of Russian oligarchs, who are under sanctions because of Putin's regime. This is the first collective game of the "club of the offended". I hope it will not be the last," the politician wrote.
Russian Partisans
Former Russian State Duma deputy Ilya Ponomarev said in an exclusive interview with CNN that the drone attack on the Kremlin was the work of Russian partisans, not the Ukrainian military.
"This is one of the Russian partisan groups, I cannot say more as they have not yet publicly claimed responsibility," he said.
According to Ponomarev, members of the partisan group inside Russia are usually young people, students, residents of major cities. They function in at least 40 Russian cities and have their own focus, specialization and main tasks.
Daring Attack by the AFU
Although Ukraine denies involvement in the attack on the Kremlin, many factors suggest that Kyiv may have carried out the operation.
Ukrainian drones have been spotted repeatedly in the suburbs of Moscow, which confirms Kyiv's technical ability to attack the Kremlin.
The chosen target also speaks against the "false flag" version of the operation, as the attack on the Kremlin was an embarrassment to the air defence forces of the occupying country and shows Putin's weakness.
The Kremlin TV channels themselves did not show the video of the attack on the Kremlin.
One may also recall the statement by the secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, Oleksandr Danilov, that Russians would see a "gift" on Red Square before May 9.
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