Only Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky could have ordered the Ukrainian drone attack on the Kremlin, said military analyst Igor Korotchenko, editor-in-chief of “Natsionalnaya Oborona” (National Defense) magazine.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Kremlin reported that the Kiev regime tried to strike two drones on the Kremlin residence of the Russian president in the night. As a result of timely actions taken by the military and special services with the use of electronic warfare systems, the devices were disabled, due to their fall and scattering of fragments of victims and material damage.
“The fact of the attack is undeniable. It’s goals and objectives were to deal a blow to the seat of the President of the Russian Federation. From the point of view of legislation, this is a terrorist attack. According to expert estimates, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine is behind the attempt to carry it out. Only and exclusively the President of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky could give permission for such an operation”, Korotchenko told Russian news agency RIA Novosti.
He noted that Ukraine uses sophisticated tactics of sabotage and terrorist operations. “Under the current conditions, their potential is significantly reinforced by appropriate intelligence support from the United States, Great Britain, and other NATO countries, and the supply of relevant components and components for UAVs, in particular, assistance in general,” the expert emphasized.
According to Korotchenko, the Ukrainian attack on the Kremlin with the help of drones could have been implemented in two possible scenarios: either the drones launched from the territory of Ukraine “helped” bypass the air defense zones along the optimal route due to detailed reconnaissance from NATO countries, or they were launched by sabotage cells of Ukrainian special services already from the territory of Russia.
At the same time, he noted that until more detailed information from the competent authorities appears, it is premature to assume what kind of drones they were.
“One important conclusion is the strengthening of the cover of especially important objects with modern air defense systems. There are proven solutions based on the ‘Tor-M2’ – this is the air defense system of the last resort. There are different options for basing, including autonomous combat modules. It is necessary to multiply the production of ‘Tor-M2’ and increase the production of ‘Buk-M3’. These are proven, new air defense systems that have already proven their effectiveness during the special operation. The only thing is that for optimal combat against UAVs, a compact inexpensive missile should be added to their line of missiles,” the expert believes.
Another comment on the technical aspect of the subject came from a leading Russian expert in the field of drones. The Ukrainian drones that attacked the Kremlin could fly in automatic mode with a duplicated “picture” of the terrain in case the Western navigation satellites that these drones aimed at were suppressed editor-in-chief of “Bezpilotnaya Aviatsiya” (Unmanned Aviation) magazine told Denis Fedutinov to RIA Novosti.
“The control (of the drones that attacked the Kremlin) could be carried out in automatic mode with navigation by satellite coordinates with duplication by the image of the underlying surface as a backup in case of suppression of GNSS (satellite navigation system) signals, or by pre-laid beacons along the flight route,” he said.
Fedutinov noted that “in the attack on the Kremlin, judging by the nature, trajectory and flight speed that we see in the published videos, aircraft-type drones were involved, and, if we roughly estimate their size, with a wingspan of about 3-4 meters.”
According to the expert, these could be civilian drones of the Mugin family (made in China), which are available on the open market and are easily adapted to military needs. The expert recalled that these drones have already been repeatedly used by Kiev in attacks on Russian military and civilian targets. “However, it could also be other UAVs, including those of Ukrainian development of a similar dimension,” the expert added.
Speaking about the proposed UAV launch site, Fedutinov noted that the flight range of these devices, used as a kamikaze drone, theoretically allows them to reach the target from the territory of Ukraine. “The range of such drones, as we have seen before, may well provide the opportunity to fly to Moscow in a one-way flight,” he said.
At the same time, the expert added, overcoming such a distance over the territory of Russia, followed by a flight over Moscow, is obviously associated with considerable risks.
“The need to fly at low altitudes, including taking into account the terrain, which is especially important in the final leg of the flight, significantly complicates the task. Based on this, one should not exclude the possibility of launching a drone by a sabotage and reconnaissance group directly from the territory of Russia, including from territory of the Moscow region,” the source said.
Gennady Zyuganov, the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), also made a statement on this issue. Information about drone attacks on the Kremlin confirms that a full-scale war is being waged against Russia, said Zyuganov.
“The information about the attacks of Bandera drones on the Kremlin once again confirms that a real full-scale war is being waged against our country. The Nazi enemy has no conscience and honor; ‘red lines’ do not restrain it. It daily mercilessly kills children, maims the civilian population, strikes on civilian infrastructure, including nuclear power plants, and on our decision-making centers,” he wrote on his Telegram channel.
According to the parliamentarian, decisive action is needed, including stopping the supply of military equipment to Ukraine from abroad.
“As you can see, delay only plays into the hands of the enemy. Provocations are intensifying in all directions. Impunity encourages the Bandera clique to sabotage and shell civilians,” Zyuganov added.
The deputy stressed that today, in order to defeat “neo-Nazis and their true masters – the collective West” – the maximum cohesion of society is required.