“They will regret”: Putin promises more destruction in Ukraine after drone strikes in Kazan

Last update:December 22, 2024, 8:39 p.m. IST

Ukraine’s drone attack hit a luxury building in Kazan.

Local officials stand in front of a residential building damaged following a drone attack in Kazan, amid the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict. (IMAGE: AFP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed on Sunday to bring more “destruction” to Ukraine in retaliation for a drone attack on the central Russian city of Kazan the day before.

Russia has blamed Ukraine for a “massive” drone attack that hit a luxury building in the city, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the border.

Videos posted on Russian social media showed drones hitting a high-rise glass building and setting off fireballs, although no casualties were reported following the strike.

“Whoever tries to destroy, and no matter how much he tries, he himself will face much greater destruction and will regret what he is trying to do to our country,” Putin said during a televised government meeting on Sunday.

Putin was speaking to the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a road opening ceremony via video link.

The attack on Kazan was the latest in a series of escalating air attacks during a conflict that has lasted nearly three years.

Ukraine has not commented on this strike.

Putin has previously threatened to target central kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.

And the Defense Ministry has called Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities in recent weeks retaliation against kyiv, using Western-supplied missiles to hit Russian air bases and weapons factories.

Advances

The latest threat comes as Russia claims new battlefield gains in eastern Ukraine.

The Defense Ministry said on Telegram that its troops had “liberated” the villages of Lozova, in the northeastern region of Kharkiv, and Krasnoye, called Sontsivka in Ukraine.

The latter is close to the resource center of Kurakhove, which Russia has almost surrounded and which would constitute a key objective in Moscow’s attempt to seize the entire Donetsk region.

Russia has accelerated its advance into eastern Ukraine in recent months, seeking to secure as much territory as possible before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January.

The Republican promised to quickly end the conflict that has lasted nearly three years, without proposing concrete conditions for a ceasefire or a peace agreement.

Moscow’s military says it has taken control of more than 190 Ukrainian settlements this year, with kyiv struggling to hold the line amid shortages of manpower and ammunition.

kyiv also accused Russian forces on Sunday of killing captured Ukrainian soldiers – an alleged violation of war crimes.

A video released by Ukraine’s 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade shows “shooting at surrendered soldiers,” Kiev human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said in a message on Telegram.

He said the video — aerial drone footage of an apparent confrontation between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers — showed Russians shooting the Ukrainians at point-blank range after they had already surrendered.

AFP was unable to verify the images.

It is the latest in a series of similar allegations filed by Ukraine throughout the nearly three-year conflict.

(This article has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP)