Support The Moscow Times!

Russian Lawmaker Calls for 'Squadron of Eagles' to Protect Kremlin

Sergei Kiselev / Moskva News Agency

As the fallout from Wednesday morning's apparent drone strike on the Kremlin continued to dominate the Russian news cycle, the deputy chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee made an unusual call for a "squadron of eagle interceptors" to be created to help defend Moscow from future drone strikes.

"We need to think about protecting our important infrastructure to the point of forming a squadron of drone interceptor eagles in the Kremlin and other places," Alexei Zhuravlev told Russian news agency RIA Novosti on Thursday, apparently in full seriousness.

Following his call, military expert and pro-war pundit Vladislav Shurygin posted a video to his Telegram channel showing an eagle successfully intercepting a drone in mid-flight.

Zhuravlev also called for a Russian strike on the headquarters of the Ukrainian intelligence services and the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in response to the alleged Kremlin drone attack. 

"It is necessary to target the center of Kyiv! Destroy the president's office, raze the Verkhovna Rada, the General Staff, and the buildings where the Ukrainian special services are located to the ground," the parliamentarian said.

"The fact that a drone flew to the Kremlin is a personal insult to me," Zhuravlev added.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more