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A day after two explosions in the Kremlin sparked accusations between Ukraine and Russia, the Ukrainian capital was on Thursday for a retaliatory attack.
The bluster that followed news of the exploding drone fueled fears that Moscow would use Wednesday’s incident to justify intensifying strikes. Russia, blaming Ukraine for what it called an attempt to kill President Vladimir V. Putin, chose to publicize the incident and said it had the right to retaliate.
Early Thursday, it was unclear who was responsible for the drone, which exploded 15 minutes later. The United States Embassy in Kyiv issued a warning on Wednesday that there is a heightened risk of Russian missile attacks, including on the Ukrainian capital and surrounding areas, citing “increased attacks in Ukraine and inflammatory rhetoric from Moscow.”
Ukraine, which has traditionally pursued a policy of deliberate ambiguity about who was responsible for the attacks on Russia, denied responsibility for the drone attack on Wednesday, with President Volodymyr Zelensky saying Moscow had staged the incident to drum up public support.
Mr Zelensky is in the midst of a rare trip outside Ukraine, arriving in the Netherlands on Wednesday after spending the day meeting with Nordic leaders in Finland. While in the Netherlands, he is expected to speak in The Hague, visit the International Criminal Court and meet with Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Amsterdam on Thursday, according to Dutch media reports.
Mr Zelensky has long called for Mr Putin and officials who helped bring the war to Ukraine to be held accountable under international law. He and other Ukrainian officials have proposed that European leaders create a court for that purpose, which could work alongside the International Criminal Court but go through a long and burdensome prosecution process. Mr. Zelensky referred to the court on Wednesday.
“We are not attacking Putin,” he said. And about the fate of the Russian leader, he said, “We leave it to the courts.”
Ukraine’s preparations for the expected counterattack have been underway for weeks. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Mr Zelensky, suggested on Wednesday that Russia could carry out drone strikes to justify launching a “large-scale terrorist provocation” against Ukraine in the coming days.
Mr Putin is set to lead a military parade on Tuesday, Russia’s main patriotic holiday known as Victory Day — a celebration of the Soviet Union’s World War II victory over Nazi Germany.
Air raid sirens that had been wailing in Kyiv for three out of six nights before sounded again on Thursday. Three loud booms were heard around 2:30 am.
Marc Santora, Andrew E. Kramer and Johanna Lemola contribute reports.
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