Moscow claims Kiev is planning to assassinate Putin. The Russians are said to have discussed the matter with the US

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Russian television that according to information from Russia’s Vedomosti or Lenta servers, Ukrainian secret services are preparing to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Andrei Belousov.

According to him, the attack should have taken place on July 28, when the two were celebrating Russian Navy Day in St. Petersburg.

However, Belousov is said to have called US President Lloyd Austin to dissuade Kiev from carrying out the plan. Ukraine has not commented on Russia’s claims.

At the end of July, the New York Times (NYT) reported, citing unnamed officials, that the Russian Defense Minister had warned Austin in a phone call about alleged Ukrainian covert actions against Russia. The details of the plan that Russia said Ukraine was preparing were unclear.

But anonymous sources told The New York Times that the Pentagon knew nothing about such things and confirmed that Washington took the statement very seriously. The newspaper also pointed out that it is not clear whether the threat described by Russia is real.

The Pentagon said earlier that Belousov spoke with Austin on July 12, adding that the call was initiated by the Russian side, which media described as a rare event. Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, senior defense officials have only had five calls, and almost all of them were initiated by the United States. Belousov has been in office since May, replacing Sergei Shoigu.

According to Monday’s statement, Ryabkova’s phone call between Belousov and Austin prevented the planned assassination. According to Russian media reports, the diplomat said Washington took the Russian message seriously and claimed that Russia and the United States avoided an escalation as a result. Ryabkova’s statement could not be independently confirmed.