Russia Has No Choice but To Annihilate Zelensky—Medvedev

Moscow has no choice but to eliminate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's former president and prime minister, who has accused Kyiv of launching a "terrorist attack" on the Kremlin.

Medvedev, now deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, made the remarks on his Telegram channel, where he regularly issues nuclear threats against Ukraine.

His post came shortly after Moscow accused Ukraine of attempting to assassinate Vladimir Putin with two drones, which crashed into the Russian president's Kremlin residence early on Wednesday morning.

Zelensky denied any involvement, saying his country didn't possess weapons capable of such strikes.

"After today's terrorist attack, there are no options left aside the physical elimination of Zelensky and his cabal," said Medvedev.

Medvedev also said Zelensky did not need to sign "an instrument of unconditional surrender."

"Hitler, as is known, did not sign it either. There will always be some substitute," he wrote.

Newsweek has contacted Ukraine's Foreign Ministry via email for comment.

Earlier, the press service of the Kremlin said in a statement that two Ukrainian drones had crashed into the Kremlin after being taken down by electronic-warfare systems.

It described the incident as "a planned terrorist act" and an attempt on Putin's life, while a member of the Russian parliament, Mikhail Sheremet, called for a retaliatory missile strike on Zelensky's residence in Kyiv.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin was not in the Kremlin at the time.

Zelensky denied any involvement, telling a press conference his forces were busy "defending our villages and cities" and "we do not have enough weapons even for this."

His press secretary, Serhiy Nikiforov, also denied that Ukraine had launched a strike on the Kremlin, telling reporters that Ukraine does not attack foreign territories.

"We have no information about the so-called night attacks on the Kremlin," Nikiforov said. "President Zelensky has repeatedly stated: Ukraine directs all available forces and means to liberate its own territories and not to attack others."

A video of the incident, posted by Moscow residents on Telegram, shows what appears to be a drone approaching the Kremlin before an explosion. Another clip shows smoke rising into the sky.

It remains unclear what type of drones were launched and who launched them.

The Institute for the Study of War, a think tank based in Washington, said the attack was likely staged by the Kremlin to justify a future effort to mobilize troops for the war.

Other military observers believe such an act would be too humiliating for Putin, however.

"The drone attack on Kremlin, the accompanying images, is a massive public humiliation for Putin and Russian army," tweeted political economist Konstantin Sonin.

"I understand the logic of the false flag argument, but another problem is that Putin has very few options to escalate. They cannot bomb Ukraine more massively—they are doing this for 14 months at full capacity. They cannot do more strikes on 'the centers where the decisions are made.' They have been trying to kill Zelensky for 14 months," he said.

Sonin added: "The only real escalatory option is a nuclear attack on Kyiv or another large Ukrainian city. Yet the decision of that level of craziness does not depend on false flag operations."

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