New Delhi — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused India of applying double standards after New Delhi expressed concern over reports that the residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin was targeted in an alleged Ukrainian drone attack — a claim Kyiv has firmly denied.
India said it was “deeply concerned” by the reported targeting of Putin’s residence and called for restraint to avoid undermining diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. In a post on X on Dec. 29, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said diplomacy remained the most viable path to peace.
“Deeply concerned by reports of the targeting of the residence of the President of the Russian Federation. Ongoing diplomatic efforts offer the most viable path toward ending hostilities and achieving peace,” Modi wrote.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, Zelenskyy sharply criticized the responses from India, the United Arab Emirates and other countries, saying their reactions stood in contrast to what he described as silence over Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian civilians.
“Honestly, it is confusing and unpleasant that some countries, like India, the UAE, and a few others, condemned — excuse me — our supposed drone strikes on Putin’s residence, which never happened,” Zelenskyy said, according to Ukrainian news agency Interfax-Ukraine. “But where is their condemnation of the fact that all this time they [Russia] have been attacking our children and killing people? I do not hear it from India, honestly, nor from the UAE.”
Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv was “disappointed and concerned” by the reactions from India, the UAE and Pakistan, reiterating that Russia’s allegation was unfounded and unsupported by evidence.
“Almost a day has passed, and Russia still hasn’t provided any plausible evidence to its accusations of Ukraine’s alleged attack on Putin’s residence,” Sybiha said in a post on X. “And they won’t, because there was no such attack.”
Russia made the allegation on Monday, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claiming Ukraine attempted to strike a presidential residence in the Novgorod region using long-range drones between Dec. 28 and 29. Lavrov said the alleged incident would affect Moscow’s negotiating position and warned of possible retaliation.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov later said Russia would not provide evidence for the claim, arguing that proof was unnecessary if a “massive drone attack” had occurred. He added that Moscow would harden its stance in peace negotiations.
Ukraine has dismissed the allegation as a fabrication, with Zelenskyy saying it was intended to undermine diplomatic momentum following his recent meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, during which Kyiv presented a revised peace proposal.
The Kremlin’s claim emerged shortly after that meeting, and Russian officials later said Putin had informed Trump that Moscow would review its position on peace talks in light of the alleged incident.
India, a long-standing partner of Russia, has repeatedly called for a peaceful resolution to the conflict but has avoided direct criticism of Moscow. New Delhi has abstained from United Nations resolutions condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a position that has drawn scrutiny from Kyiv in the past.
Zelenskyy previously criticized India in July 2024 after Modi visited Russia and embraced Putin on the same day Russian missiles struck a children’s hospital in Kyiv. Modi later said that when “innocent children” are killed in conflict, the “heart simply explodes,” without directly referencing the hospital attack.