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US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker on Tuesday cast doubt on Russia’s accusation that Ukraine attacked President Vladimir Putin’s residencesaying he wants to consult US intelligence on the incident.
“It’s unclear whether this actually happened,” Whitaker told Fox Business’ “Varney & Co.” in an interview about an alleged incident that Ukraine denied.
“It seems a little insensitive to me to be so close to a peace deal, with Ukraine really wanting to get to a peace deal, and then to do something that would be considered reckless or unnecessary,” he said.
Russia said on Monday that Ukraine attacked a presidential residence in the Novgorod region with 91 long-range attack drones. He said he would fight back and his negotiating position would harden during the talks.
Ukraine has called Russia’s accusations “lies” aimed at justifying further attacks against Ukraine, and its foreign minister said Tuesday that Russia had provided no evidence “because there is none.”
American President Donald Trump said Monday that Putin told him in a phone call that Ukraine had tried to attack the residence. Trump said he was “very angry” about it. Asked if there was evidence of such an attack, Trump replied: “We’ll find out.”
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The White House declined to comment further on the alleged incident, while officials in the U.S. intelligence community have remained tight-lipped about the incident. The CIA declined to comment.
“We’re going to get to the bottom of the intelligence. And for me, the most important thing is what the intelligence services of the United States and our allies say about whether this attack actually happened or not,” Whitaker said.
After a meeting with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky In Florida on Sunday, Trump said he and Zelensky were “maybe very close” to an agreement to end the war, even as the most contentious territorial issues persisted.
Zelensky said earlier Tuesday: “This so-called ‘residency strike’ story is a pure fabrication intended to justify further attacks on Ukraine, including kyiv, as well as Russia’s refusal to take the necessary steps to end the war. Typical Russian lies.”
Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, controls just under a fifth of its neighbor’s territory and says its troops are advancing.
