May 3 drone attack aimed at the Kremlin caused minimal damage but had the potential to escalate the war. (Image: Reuters)
The American spy agencies said it is unclear if Ukraine President Zelensky and top officials were aware of the operation.
American officials told the US-based news agency the New York Times that the May 3 drone attack on the Kremlin may have been carried out by one of Ukraine’s special military or intelligence units.
Two drones were flown on May 3 toward the Kremlin, but they were not able to cause much damage.
The New York Times report pointed out that the Biden administration has been unnerved by these attacks.
The officials also said that it remains unclear whether Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky or his top officials were aware of the operation. The New York Times said that some officials believe that Zelensky was not aware.
The officials mentioned in the report pointed out that they came to the preliminary conclusions based on what they intercepted when they overheard Russian officials blaming Ukraine and then also overheard some Ukrainian officials who believed that Kyiv may have been responsible for the attack.
The US, Ukraine and their allies blamed Kremlin initially for staging a false-flag operation but Dara Massicot, a military analyst at RAND, referring to the drone attack, told the New York Times that Kremlin’s response stemmed from a sense of embarrassment regarding its own air-defence systems and the security of Kremlin.
The report also pointed out that there could be loose grouping of Ukrainian units working together to carry out small-scale operations in and outside Russia, citing American spy agencies.
These units may operate independently or with partners under their command, potentially without much supervision from Zelensky.
The report also said that the US officials believe that their level of that the Ukrainian government directly authorised the Kremlin drone attack is “low”.
American spy agencies are still unsure because of lack of specific evidence which identifies which Ukrainian government officials or unit may have been involved in the attack.
American officials believe that the Ukrainians were responsible for the assassination of Daria Dugina, the daughter of a prominent Russian nationalist, the killing of a pro-Russian blogger, Vladlen Tatarsky, and the number of attacks on towns near Russia-Ukraine border like Belgorod.
The Biden administration is concerned because of the possibility of the Kremlin accusing the US of these attacks and then expanding the war to beyond Ukraine’s borders.
US officials believe that the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines was likely carried out by individuals or groups supporting Ukraine. However, their connection to the Ukrainian government is still under investigation.
Renowned journalist and Pulitzer Prize winner Seymour Hersh in February revealed that the US President Joe Biden gave the go-ahead to blast the Nord Stream pipelines.
