Russian drone strikes Ukraine security service headquarters as US talks
on the war are expected
[September 05, 2026]
By SAMYA KULLAB
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian drone struck the headquarters of
Ukraine’s security service in central Kyiv, President Volodymyr
Zelenskyy said Friday, ahead of diplomatic talks with U.S. officials on
ending the war.
The air war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified as the conflict
stretches toward five years since Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor.
Russia recently has been using fast-flying, jet-powered drones, and the
recurring wail of air-raid sirens has become part of daily life in Kyiv.
Ukraine's security service headquarters, near the historic St. Sophia
Cathedral and international hotels, is among the agencies carrying out
deep strike operations inside Russian territory. Twelve people were
wounded in Friday's attack, local authorities said.
“The drone was deliberately targeted at the head of the SBU’s office in
that building,” Zelenskyy said Friday.
Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram that acting security chief Oleksandr Poklad
had briefed him on a response, including possible targets.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called Friday's drone strike a
“major escalation” that came as potential peace talks were building
momentum.
“Moscow launched this strike during a renewed push for peace — laying
bare its true rejection of diplomacy,” he said in a post on X.
US envoys expected in Moscow and Kyiv
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed Friday that envoys Steve Witkoff
and Jared Kushner will travel to Moscow and then Kyiv over the weekend
and into early next week. The U.S. has not provided more specific timing
for the stops.
“They are bringing with them a proposal to end the war,” Trump said.
This would be their first visit to Kyiv. U.S. efforts to negotiate a
settlement have yet to produce a path to peace.
Zelenskyy said Friday that he was expecting Witkoff and Kushner to visit
Kyiv on Sunday, after visiting Moscow. He said in a Telegram post that
Ukraine will refrain from airstrikes during the negotiations and called
on Russia to reciprocate to allow the talks to proceed safely.
“As with previous diplomatic visits by the American side, we will ensure
the normal functioning of Russian airspace so that the negotiators can
arrive safely. We are concerned about their safety, not about Russia,”
Zelenskyy said.
Speaking with journalists Friday, presidential spokesperson Dmitry
Peskov refused to confirm reports that Kushner and Witkoff would visit
Moscow, saying only that the media would be informed if such a meeting
took place.
Kushner and Witkoff last visited Moscow in January, where they met with
Russian President Vladimir Putin. After that meeting, Russian
presidential aide Yury Ushakov described talks as constructive but said
that “reaching a long-term settlement can’t be expected without solving
the territorial issue.”
Further talks have lost momentum, with the White House’s attention
focused on its conflict with Iran.
Deadly strikes in Ukraine
The latest diplomatic developments coincided with a “massive” overnight
Russian attack on the Odesa region that killed one person and injured at
least five others, including a child, regional head Oleh Kiper said in a
post on Telegram. The attacks damaged multiple residential buildings,
including two multistory blocks.
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A woman rides a bicycle as firefighters try to extinguish a fire at
a destroyed pharmaceutical warehouse following Russian drone attacks
on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (AP
Photo/Francisco Seco)
Overnight strikes elsewhere in Ukraine killed two police officers in
Dnipro, officials said, while a drone attack in Kyiv wounded three
people after hitting a residential building.
Russian forces have relentlessly struck civilian areas. Previously,
these attacks occurred mostly at night, but now they are happening
during the day as well. The front line in eastern and southern
Ukraine remains largely deadlocked.
Russian oil depots set ablaze
In Russia, a large-scale Ukrainian drone strike hit the Black Sea
resort city of Sochi and the nearby district of Sirius, regional
officials said Friday. They said the attack sparked a blaze at an
oil depot but gave no further details. Russian media outlets
reported two depots were hit, with one fire in Sochi and another in
Sirius.
Ukraine has repeatedly targeted oil facilities that form the
backbone of Russia’s economy, one of the world’s largest energy
producers. Growing economic pressure and public frustration have
mounted in Russia after months of escalating Ukrainian strikes on
refineries and e-commerce hubs that have caused nationwide
disruptions.
The barrages prompted Putin last month to decree that the state can
temporarily seize control of critical infrastructure facilities if
private owners fail to protect them from Ukrainian drone attacks or
don’t rebuild them after strikes. Analysts said the move was aimed
at forcing companies to pay for their own security and bring damaged
assets back into service, despite the cost.
Drone washes up in Finland
Finnish authorities said they were investigating how a Russian-made
drone ended up on a rocky shoreline in the Pellinge archipelago east
of Helsinki.
Finland’s Border Guard said what appears to be a Geoscan 701 drone,
manufactured by a Russian company, was found on the shore. “The
device model in question is used by both state and civilian
operators, and it is not possible at this stage to determine its
intended use or identify the country or entity operating it,” the
Border Guard said in a statement.
State broadcaster Yle reported the drone was discovered Tuesday by a
fisherman.
Geoscan describes itself as one of Russia’s leading drone
manufacturers, and says the 701 model is designed for large-scale
aerial surveying.
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Associated Press writers Claudia Ciobanu in Warsaw, Poland, Katie
Marie Davies in Manchester, England, and Matthew Lee in Washington
contributed to this report.
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