Moscow on Monday accused Kyiv of launching a drone attack overnight on the residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning that its position in the ongoing negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine would therefore be "re-examined".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky immediately called the accusation a "lie" intended to prepare new attacks against Kyiv and to "undermine" diplomatic efforts between Ukraine and the United States, the day after a meeting in Florida with Donald Trump.

"I don't like it. It's not good," Mr. Trump told reporters Monday from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach. "You know who told me about it? President Putin," he said. "It's a delicate time. It's not the right time," he added.

These accusations cast doubt on the continuation of the intense diplomatic negotiations underway since November to try to end the deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War.

During the night, "the kyiv regime launched a terrorist attack using 91 drones against the state residence of President Putin" in the Novgorod region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Telegram, adding that all the drones had been intercepted.

This attack, at a time of "intensive negotiations between Russia and the United States on the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict", will not "go unanswered", he said.

The Ukrainian president reacted almost immediately during an online press conference: "They (Russia) do not want to end the war."

Meanwhile, Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump spoke by telephone on Monday to discuss the progress of the talks following the meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky on Sunday. The White House described the conversation as "positive."

"International troops"

According to Kremlin diplomatic advisor Yuri Ushakov, Vladimir Putin nevertheless told his American counterpart that Russia's position on "a number of agreements reached at the previous stage" and on solutions discussed would be "re-examined" after the "terrorist attack" in Kyiv.

Volodymyr Zelensky and Kyiv negotiators spoke by telephone on Monday with US envoy Steve Witkoff about the next steps in the talks.

Mr. Zelensky had stated earlier on Monday that the United States had offered Ukraine "solid" security guarantees for a period of 15 years, renewable, against Russia.

The Ukrainian president also stated that the presence of "international troops" in Ukraine, a possibility rejected by the Kremlin, would be a necessary and "real" security guarantee that would strengthen the confidence of citizens and investors in the face of the risk of a new Russian aggression.

The new version of the plan, presented by Washington almost a month ago and considered by Kyiv and its allies as particularly favorable to Moscow, proposes a freeze on the current front line without offering an immediate solution to the territorial claims of Russia, which controls about 20% of Ukraine.

It also abandons two key Kremlin demands: a withdrawal of Ukrainian soldiers from the Donetsk region, in the industrial basin of Donbas (east), and a legally binding commitment from Ukraine not to join NATO.

Mr. Zelensky also indicated on Monday that the territorial issue and the operation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant remained the only two unresolved points.

Security guarantees

On Monday, the Ukrainian head of state stressed that any plan to end the war should be signed by Kyiv, Moscow, Washington and the Europeans.

And he said he hoped for a meeting "in the coming days" in Ukraine between American and European officials.

Furthermore, he also again supported the organization of a referendum in Ukraine, considering it to be a "powerful instrument" for the "Ukrainian nation" to accept the peace conditions that would be proposed.

In Kyiv, residents say they are rather skeptical about the possibility of guaranteeing the future security of their country and the demands made on Ukraine.

"We have already signed security guarantees, and what have they brought us? Absolutely nothing. What security guarantees can come from a terrorist state?", photographer Anastassia Pachtchenko told AFP, referring to Russia.

And in the streets of Moscow, few passers-by want to give their opinion on the progress of the negotiations.

"Only Russia can set conditions," says Alexei, a 53-year-old engineer, certain that the Russian president will not accept the conditions agreed upon by Ukrainians, Americans and Europeans.

Nikita, a 23-year-old who fought in Ukraine for a year, welcomes the Russian advance in the east of the country. "Russia is a superpower that still has to be reckoned with," he emphasizes.