Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that US envoys are expected in Kyiv in the coming days.
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Since Moscow invaded the neighboring country and the large-scale war entered its fifth year, the air war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified. Russian forces relentlessly strike civilian residential areas.
Previously, these attacks mostly took place at night, but now they are also carried out during the day. The front line in eastern and southern Ukraine remains essentially stuck.
US envoys expected in Kyiv
Although US efforts to negotiate peace have not yet yielded results, in his Thursday evening speech, V. Zelensky indicated that preliminary dates for meetings in Moscow and Kyiv have already been agreed upon. According to him, the Ukrainian negotiation team maintains almost constant contact with the US side and is preparing for talks.
“They confirmed that they will hold a meeting in Moscow, and later – in Kyiv. We hope the latter will take place in the coming days. This is very important. It is important that the US remains actively involved,” he said, adding that Ukraine is ready for substantive high-level negotiations.
On Friday, the Russian state news agency TASS reported that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will first visit Moscow, and later – on September 5–6 – Kyiv, but this information could not be independently confirmed.
Additionally, the Ukrainian publication The Kyiv Independent on Friday quoted a source claiming that the US envoys’ visit is hanging by a thread. According to the source, S. Witkoff allegedly “started to get scared,” so alternative plans began to be discussed.
“The Russians do not want them to come here, to Kyiv, and Witkoff always reacts sensitively to Russian moods,” the source said. “They are told it is dangerous there.”
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov refused to confirm reports about J. Kushner’s and S. Witkoff’s visit to Moscow and only stated that the media will be informed if such a meeting takes place.
US officials have not yet confirmed the visit.
The last time J. Kushner and S. Witkoff visited Moscow was in January 2026, where they met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This visit would be their first in Kyiv.
After that meeting, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov called the talks constructive but noted that “a long-term agreement cannot be expected without resolving the territorial issue.”
However, further negotiations lost momentum as the White House’s attention shifted to the conflict with Iran.
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At a press conference on Wednesday, V. Putin called the negotiations “frozen.”
Bloody strikes in Ukraine
Meanwhile, during a massive night Russian strike in the Odesa region, one person was killed and at least five others, including a child, were injured, regional head Oleh Kiper reported on the social network Telegram. Several residential buildings were damaged in the attacks, including two apartment buildings.
During night strikes in other parts of Ukraine, two police officers were killed in Dnipro, officials reported, and three people were injured in Kyiv during a drone attack on a residential building.
In Russia, on Friday, the Black Sea resort of Sochi and the nearby Sirius district were affected by a large-scale Ukrainian drone strike, local officials reported. According to them, a fire broke out at an oil depot due to the attack, but no further details were provided. Russian media reported that two bases were hit – fires broke out in Sochi and Sirius.
Ukraine has repeatedly targeted oil facilities, which form the economic backbone of Russia – one of the world’s largest energy producers. Economic pressure and public dissatisfaction are growing in Russia after months of intensified Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries and e-commerce giant facilities, causing disruptions across the country.
Due to these attacks, V. Putin issued a decree last month allowing the state to temporarily take control of critical infrastructure facilities if private owners fail to protect them from Ukrainian drone attacks or do not restore them after strikes. Analysts say this move aims to force companies to pay for their own security and return damaged property to operation despite the costs.
Drone found in Finland
Finnish officials on Friday reported investigating how a Russian-made drone ended up on a rocky shore on an archipelago east of Helsinki.
The Finnish Border Guard reported that a device resembling a Russian company’s Geoscan 701 drone was found on the coast.
“This model is used by both state and civilian operators, so at this stage it is impossible to determine its purpose or identify the country or entity that operated it,” the Border Guard said in a statement.
Public broadcaster Yle reported that the drone was found by a fisherman on Tuesday.
Geoscan presents itself as one of Russia’s leading drone manufacturers and states that the 701 model is intended for large-scale aerial photography.
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