Budanov explained why Russia is attacking Kyiv with jet-powered drones
Russia may continue to launch rocket-powered drone strikes on Kyiv until the parliamentary elections scheduled for September 18–20. The Kremlin is seeking to create the appearance of “victories” for the public, as there have been no significant gains on the front lines.
According to Budanov, the Russian leadership is interested in creating a “picture of victory” for its own voters. That is why attacks on the Ukrainian capital may continue at least until mid-September.
According to Budanov, the intensification of strikes on the capital is linked to the Russian authorities’ desire to demonstrate a false “victory” to their domestic audience—a victory the occupiers are unable to achieve on the front lines.
“Elections are approaching in Russia. They, too, need to show their voters some kind of impressive image of victory, because they do not experience victory on the battlefield—just as the rest of the world does not. That is why they resort to terror. They do not know how to act otherwise,” Budanov noted.
Responding to journalists’ questions about how long such raids on the capital would continue, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine said: “Well, at least until the elections, as I understand it.”
This was reported by the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kirill Budanov, in comments to journalists.
Budanov commented on the mention of his name in materials released by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU).
As a reminder, on August 19, NABU and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced that they had served notices of suspicion of laundering criminally obtained funds to a number of officials who, on June 29, arranged for the payment of a 150 million hryvnia bail for one of the defendants in the “Midas” case. According to the investigation, the group included: the deputy head of the Office of the President, a former member of parliament, the chairman of the board of a state-owned bank, the chairman of the supervisory board of a state-owned bank, and other individuals.
In particular, investigative actions were carried out at the residence of Iryna Mudra, deputy head of the Office of the President.
On August 19, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed Iryna Mudra from her position as Deputy Head of the Office of the President. Mudra later stated that she had submitted her resignation herself.
