Yahoo Autos Blinken on Putin assassination attempt claim: Take anything from Kremlin with ‘very large shaker of salt’
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in regard to the Kremlin’s claim that Ukraine attempted a drone strike to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin that anything from the Russian government should be taken with “a very large shaker of salt.”
Blinken told The Washington Post on Wednesday that he cannot validate the reports of an attempted Ukrainian attack on the Kremlin, but observers should be skeptical of statements from the Russian government.
“I can’t in any way validate them,” said Blinken, who was at an event with the Post to preview the 2023 World Press Freedom Index. “We simply don’t know. Second, I would take anything coming out of the Kremlin with a very large shaker of salt.”
Ukraine has denied the Kremlin’s claims that it sent drones to attack the president.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said in a tweet that Ukraine has fought an “exclusively defensive war” and has not targeted any territory inside Russia.
The Kremlin said the Russian military and special forces disabled the drones electronically and that it “reserves the right to take retaliatory measures where and when it sees fit.”
Blinken also said that if Ukraine were to attack Russian territory, the U.S. would not denounce it, stating that “these are decisions for Ukraine to make.”
Ukraine is expected to launch a counteroffensive soon to retake additional territory that Russia has captured during the war.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
