Kyiv, Ukraine: A Russian drone struck Ukraine's security service headquarters in central Kyiv on Friday, just as US envoys prepared to travel to Moscow and Kyiv in a fresh attempt to revive stalled efforts to end the nearly five-year-old war.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the drone deliberately targeted the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service, or SBU, in central Kyiv. Twelve people were wounded, according to local authorities.

The strike came as US officials Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were expected to travel to Moscow and then Kyiv over the weekend and early next week. The visit would mark their first trip to Kyiv as part of Washington's efforts to broker an end to the conflict.

Zelenskyy said he expected the two US envoys in Kyiv on Sunday after their Moscow visit. He also said Ukraine would refrain from launching airstrikes during the negotiations and urged Russia to observe a similar pause.

“The drone was deliberately targeted at the head of the SBU’s office in that building. I instructed Poklad to respond appropriately, significantly, and, if possible, in kind to the Russians for this attack,” Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the attack as a major escalation, arguing that it demonstrated Moscow's approach even as diplomatic efforts were gathering pace.

“Moscow launched this strike during a renewed push for peace — laying bare its true rejection of diplomacy,” he said in a post on X.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine would prioritise the safety of the American negotiators.

“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,” he said.

The timing of the visits was not independently confirmed. A US official said Witkoff and Kushner would travel to Moscow and Kyiv but did not provide specific details. Russian state news agency Tass reported that they would visit Moscow first and then Kyiv on Saturday and Sunday.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm the reported Moscow visit, saying the media would be informed if such a meeting took place.

The two US envoys last visited Moscow in January, when they met Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov described those discussions as constructive but cautioned that “reaching a long-term settlement can’t be expected without solving the territorial issue.”

Strikes continue as diplomacy resumes

The diplomatic push comes as Russian and Ukrainian forces continue exchanging heavy attacks.

A “massive” overnight Russian assault on Ukraine's Odesa region killed one person and wounded at least five others, including a child, regional governor Oleh Kiper said. Several residential buildings, including two high-rise blocks, were damaged.

Two police officers were killed in overnight strikes in Dnipro, while another Russian drone attack in Kyiv wounded three people after hitting a residential building.

Russian attacks on civilian areas have continued relentlessly, with strikes increasingly occurring during daylight as well as at night. Fighting along the eastern and southern front lines remains largely deadlocked.

Ukraine has also continued striking targets inside Russia. A large Ukrainian drone attack hit the Black Sea resort city of Sochi and the nearby Sirius district, Russian regional officials said. The assault triggered a fire at an oil depot, while Russian media reported that two depots were hit.

Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russian oil infrastructure, seeking to put pressure on an energy sector that is central to the country's economy. Months of strikes on refineries and other facilities have contributed to disruptions across Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin responded last month by ordering that the state could temporarily take control of critical infrastructure if private owners failed to protect facilities from drone attacks or rebuild them after strikes.

Russian drone found in Finland

The war's wider security repercussions were also highlighted in Finland, where authorities were investigating a Russian-made drone discovered on a rocky shoreline in the Pellinge archipelago east of Helsinki.

Finland's Border Guard identified the device as what appeared to be a Geoscan 701, a model used by both government and civilian operators.

“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.

Finnish broadcaster Yle reported that a fisherman discovered the drone on Tuesday.

Geoscan describes itself as one of Russia's leading drone manufacturers and says the Geoscan 701 is intended for large-scale aerial surveying.

The developments underline the difficult backdrop to the latest US diplomatic initiative: even as Washington prepares another round of talks, drones and missiles continue to strike targets in Ukraine and Russia.