WSJ: US intel says Ukraine did not target Putin in drone attack

U.S. national-security officials have challenged Moscow’s claims that Ukraine attempted to target Russian President Vladimir Putin in a drone operation, saying Kyiv was not behind any strike on the Russian leader or his residence, The Wall Street Journal says.

A Central Intelligence Agency assessment found no attempted attack against Putin had occurred, according to a U.S. official briefed on the intelligence. The CIA declined to comment.

“The U.S. found that Ukraine had been seeking to strike a military target located in the same region as Putin’s country residence but not close by,” the official said.

President Donald Trump appeared to play down Russia’s allegations on December 31. He posted a link to a New York Post editorial asserting that the Ukraine strike likely did not occur and shared the headline: “Putin ‘attack’ bluster shows Russia is the one standing in the way of peace.”

Trump’s post followed a briefing from CIA Director John Ratcliffe. “U.S. intelligence has a number of ways to monitor Russia’s airspace, military activities and attacks on its territory, including with satellites, radar, and communication intercepts,” the report said.

Trump told reporters on December 31 that he was “very angry” after Putin informed him in a phone conversation that Ukrainian drones had targeted his residence, known as Dolgiye Borody, or Long Beards. Asked if the U.S. had evidence that such an attack had taken place, Trump replied: “You are saying, maybe the attack didn’t take place—that is possible too, I guess, but President Putin told me this morning it did.”

Ukraine has acknowledged its role in some assassinations and sabotage operations deep inside Russian territory but has consistently denied targeting Putin. Ukrainian officials argue that Moscow is seeking a pretext to strain relations between Washington and Kyiv and to weaken its negotiating position in U.S.-brokered peace talks.

In an effort to support its claims, Russia’s defence ministry said it had intercepted 91 Ukrainian drones aimed at Putin’s Novgorod residence. A video released by Russian officials showed what they described as a downed Ukrainian drone equipped with explosives lying in the snow.

The Russian allegation followed Trump’s nearly three-hour meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on December 28, which the U.S. president described as “excellent,” and during which he reportedly raised the possibility of travelling to Kyiv to press for peace.

Citing the alleged attack, Moscow has threatened to recalibrate its hardline stance in peace negotiations and launched drone strikes in Ukraine’s port region of Odessa.

Trump’s Truth Social post on December 31 was one of his most direct criticisms of the Kremlin in recent months, portraying Russia as an obstacle to peace, despite his previous statements suggesting Moscow is eager to end the war.

The claim also drew international reactions. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “deeply concerned,” Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it “a heinous act,” and the United Arab Emirates Foreign Ministry expressed similar concern.

Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, said in a social-media post that he had discussed next steps with British, French, and German national-security advisers on Wednesday, with participation from Rustem Umerov, a senior Ukrainian security official and negotiator.

The discussions, Witkoff wrote, “focused on possible security guarantees and ‘deconfliction mechanisms’ to help end the war and ensure it does not restart.”

By Aghakazim Guliyev