AN OBVIOUS THREAT, THAT IS WHAT
THE KREMLIN IS CALLING THE
LATEST DRONE STRIKE ON THE
RUSSIAN CAPITAL.
IT SAYS THAT TWO DRONES WERE
DESTROYED.
--
STRUCK A COUPLE NIGHTS EARLIER.
RUSSIA BLAMES THE ATTACK ON
UKRAINE, AND SAYS QUOTE,
MEASURES HAVE BEEN TAKEN.
CNN'S NICK ROBERTSON TELLS US
ONE EXPRESSION OFFICIAL HAS AN
EVEN MORE OMINOUS WARNING.
>> RUSSIA'S WAR IN UKRAINE IS
INCREASINGLY BLOWING UP IN
MOSCOW.
THIS UKRAINIAN DRONE ATTACK
SUNDAY NIGHT, BRINGING RUSSIA'S
WAR HUNDREDS OF MILES AWAY INTO
THE HEARTS OF ITS OWN CAPITAL.
SHOCKING CITIZENS.
MY FRIENDS AND I RENTED AN
APARTMENT TO COME HERE IN AND
WENT.
AT SOME POINT I HEARD AN
EXPLOSION, IT WAS LIKE A WAVE.
EVERYONE JUMPED.
>> ATTACKS LIKE THIS IN MOSCOW
IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY
COMMON.
A PSYCHOLOGICAL BLOW FOR A
POPULATION REPEATEDLY TOLD BY
PUTIN STATE MEDIA THAT THEY ARE
WINNING THE SO-CALLED SPECIAL
MILITARY OPERATION.
>> TRANSLATOR: I WAS ASLEEP,
AND WOKEN UP BY AN EXPLOSION.
EVERYTHING STARTED TO SHAKE IN
THE WHOLE BUILDING AT COME
DOWN.
♪ ♪
>> THIS WEEKEND, PUTIN WAS
KEEPING UP THE PRETENSE THAT
EVERYTHING IS OKAY.
CELEBRATING NAVY DAY.
BUT BEHIND THE SCENES, HIS
OFFICIALS APPEAR RATTLED BY
UKRAINE'S REFUSAL TO BE BEATEN.
FORMER PRESIDENT, DIMITRI
MEDVEDEV, SAYS IF UKRAINE'S
COUNTEROFFENSIVE IS SUCCESSFUL.
RUSSIA WILL USE ITS NUCLEAR
WEAPONS.
MEANWHILE, THE KREMLIN IS
DISMISSING THE DRONE STRIKES IN
MOSCOW AS AN ACT OF
DESPERATION.
THE DEFENSE MINISTER, CALLING
THEM TERRORIST ATTACKS.
REALITY?
THEY'VE GOT MOSCOW'S ATTENTION.
[SPEAKING IN A NON-ENGLISH
LANGUAGE]
UKRAINE'S PRESIDENT IS HINTING
MORE OF THESE STRIKES TO COME.
>> TRANSLATOR: UKRAINE IS
GETTING STRONGER, GRADUALLY,
THE WAR IS RETURNING TO THE
TERRITORY OF RUSSIA.
TO ITS SYMBOLIC CENTERS AND
MILITARY BASES.
THIS IS INEVITABLE, NATURAL, AN
ABSOLUTELY FAIR PROCESS.
>> ZELENSKYY IS STATING WHAT IS
BECOMING INCREASINGLY APPARENT.
UKRAINE IS RAMPING UP DRONE
STRIKES INSIDE OF RUSSIA.
IN RECENT WEEKS, TARGETS JUST
OVER THE BORDER.
IN AREAS VITAL TO RUSSIA'S WAR
EFFORT.
HAVE INCREASED TO.
[SPEAKING IN A NON-ENGLISH
LANGUAGE]
>> THE IMPACT EVEN BREAKING
THROUGH ON RUSSIAN STATE MEDIA.
WHAT IS CLEAR?
UKRAINE FIGHTS ON RUSSIAN SOIL
IS HAVING EFFECT.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN, LONDON.
>> NEXT TIME WE KNOW IN THIS
AREA, THAT WAS FASCINATING.
WHERE DOES THIS TAKE US?
>> I THINK IT TAKES US TO THE
POINT WHERE THERE'S A LITTLE
BIT MORE POLITICAL PRESSURE ON
PRESIDENT PUTIN.
HIS PROPAGANDA IS --
CANNOT WITHSTAND THE RIGORS OF
THE REALITY OF DRONE STRIKES IN
A MILITARY --
IN MOSCOW, BECAUSE THE
NARRATIVE HAS BEEN THAT THEY'RE
WAITING.
IT NOW BECOMES APPARENT THAT
THOSE GOVERNMENT WORKERS, IN
THOSE SHINY OFFICE BUILDINGS,
HAVE NOW BEEN MOVED OUT SINCE
THE WEEKEND --
THEY'LL NOTICE SOMETHING IS
DIFFERENT.
AND WHEN THEY LISTEN TO THE
KREMLIN SAY, FOR EXAMPLE, AFTER
THE DEFENSE MINISTRY --
THREE DRONES, AND WE SHOT TWO
OF THEM DOWN, AND THE OTHER ONE
WE WERE ABLE TO INTERRUPT BY
ELECTRONIC MEASURES, AND IT
CRASHED.
BUT HOLD ON A MINUTE.
IT CRASHED INTO THE SAME
BUILDING THAT WAS TARGETED TWO
DAYS AGO?
IT'S NOT GOING TO LOOK TO
PEOPLE LIKE A --
THERE WILL BE FURTHER SCRUTINY
ON PUTIN'S WAR IN UKRAINE.
I JUST WANT TO ADD ONE LITTLE
LINE THERE, BECAUSE I THINK
IT'S IMPORTANT --
THE MUTINY AND THE DISRUPTION A
MONTH AGO.
SUDDENLY, PUTIN'S VERSION OF
WHAT RUSSIA COULD BE IS NOT AS
STABLE FOR PEOPLE AS IT WAS.
KYIV TAKING THIS WORD OF THE
A CERTAIN
EXTENT IT'S,
THAT'S WHAT HE DID AFTER THE
PRIGOZHIN UPRISING.
EVERYONE DID A GREAT JOB WHEN
THEY DIDN'T.
AND THEN TRY TO CARRY.
ON APPEASED NOT ADDRESS THE
UNDERLYING ISSUES.
YES, HE FORCED THAT PRIGOZHIN.
SO WHAT DOES HE DO?
NOW THEY WILL TRY, AND WE HEARD
THIS FROM THE KREMLIN SPOKESMAN
TODAY, DIMITRI PESKOV, HE SAID
LESS TODAY ABOUT THE DRONE
STRIKES LAST NIGHT THAT HE DID
YESTERDAY ABOUT THE DRONE
STRIKE OVER THE WEEKEND, WHICH
TELLS YOU THE KREMLIN IS TRYING
TO DAMPER IT DOWN.
NOTHING TO SEE HERE FOLKS, GO
SPEAK TO THE DEFENSE MINISTRY.
THE DEFENSE MINISTRY SAYS, WE
TAKE CARE OF THE DRONES.
WE SHOT DOWN TWO.
ANOTHER ONE CRASHED.
THERE IS NOTHING TO SEE, HERE
LET'S CARRY ON.
IT IS NOT YES, THAT CAN WORK TO
A DEGREE.
>> SO LET'S CARRY, ON MEANTIME
ON THE GROUND, THE
COUNTEROFFENSIVE IS CLEARLY ON.
PEYTON WALSH REPORTING FROM THE
FRONT LINES, OUR COLLEAGUE
THERE ON THE GROUND.
WHAT IS GOING ON?
WHO IS WINNING THIS WAR AT THIS
POINT?
>> NOBODY BECAUSE I DON'T THINK
THE WAR WILL BE ONE UNTIL THERE
IS A PEACE DEAL.
AND ULTIMATELY, A PEACE DEAL IS
SOMETHING BOTH SIDES WILL HAVE
TO WALK AWAY FROM.
IF THERE IS A DIFFERENT
LEADERSHIP IN MOSCOW THAT THAT
DEAL WILL LOOK DIFFERENT THAN
IF IT'S PRESIDENT PUTIN AT THE
MOMENT.
SO WE ARE A LONG WAY FROM
SAYING ANYONE HAS WON.
WHERE WE ARE, WE ARE STILL IN
BUILDUP.
PHASE UKRAINE IS STILL GETTING
IN THE MUNITIONS AND THE
TRAINING THAT IT NEEDS.
ONE OF THE DISCUSSIONS TODAY ON
THE UKRAINE MILITARY FRONT IS
ABOUT THE F-16 TRAINING FOR ITS
FIGHTER PILOTS.
IT'S BEEN 70 --
IT HAS NOT BEEN PUT INTO
EFFECT.
SIX MONTHS FROM NOW, NINE
MONTHS FROM NOW, UKRAINE WILL
HAVE F-16S EXPECTEDLY IN ITS
AIR FLEET.
AND AIR FORCE.
AND BETTER ABLE TO CONTROL THE
SKIES.
WHAT I AM SAYING IS THAT THERE
IS NOT A WINNER AT THE MOMENT
BECAUSE BOTH SIDES ARE STILL
SHAPING UP IN BUILDING UP THEIR
FORCES ON THE LINES ON THE
GROUND, THEY ARE CHANGING.
THE DRONES STRIKES IN MOSCOW
ARE NOT UPSETTING PUTIN FROM
HIS POSITION OF POWER.
>> NO ONE ENDS THIS TO END ANY
--
EXPECTS THIS TO END ANYTIME
SOON.
YOU TALK ABOUT WHETHER THERE'S
A CHANGE IN, POWER IN RUSSIA.
WHAT IS THE REAL LIKELIHOOD?
I MEAN, HOW REALISTIC IS IT
THAT PUTIN WILL BE UNSEATED AT
THIS POINT?
>> IS THERE ANY EVIDENCE TO
SUGGEST?
THAT >> AT THIS, POINT NO, BUT
I THINK THE SMALL --
GRUDEN HAS COME OUT OF THE
WRANGLE WITH PRIGOZHIN LOOKING
WEAKER THAN HE HAS ENABLED MORE
OF THE DISSENTING VOICES AROUND
HIM THAN HE NORMALLY IS ABLE TO
MANAGE.
THAT IS UNCOMFORTABLE FOR HIM.
HE'S NOW GOT AN UNCOMFORTABLE
OR NOT TERRIBLY DANGEROUS, BUT
UNCOMFORTABLE POLITICAL
SITUATION WITH THE STRIKES
DEVELOPING INSIDE OF MOSCOW.
HIS REAL HARDSHIP COMES WHEN
AND IF THE ECONOMY, HIS ECONOMY,
RUSSIA'S ECONOMY BITES HARDER.
AND IF YOU HAVE PEOPLE OUT OF
WORK, YOU KNOW, THESE
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESSES, THEY
ARE NO LONGER TRADING SINCE
LAST WINTER.
IF THERE ARE PEOPLE, RUSSIANS,
UNEMPLOYED ON THE STREETS, IN A
COLD WINTER.
THEY ARE GOING TO WANT
SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
WE ARE NOT THERE, YET.
>> NICK, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO
HAVE, YOU GOOD TO BE IN LONDON,
GOOD TO HAVE YOU ON THE SET
WITH ME HERE.