Overview
- A Russian drone struck the central SBU (Ukraine’s security service) headquarters on Friday, wounding civilians and staff and—according to President Zelensky—aiming at the interim SBU chief’s office.
- President Zelensky directed SBU head Oleksandr Poklad to prepare an appropriate and potentially symmetrical response and said the armed forces will support that operation.
- Trump envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in Moscow and then traveled to Kyiv under a Kremlin-declared three-day pause in strikes that coincided with their visit.
- A separate security crisis involving Stepan Kaplunov has deepened distrust inside Ukraine’s intelligence community and produced a shootout between SBU and GUR units that is now under investigation.
- A recent surge of faster, daytime and jet-powered Russian drones has strained Kyiv’s air defenses, disrupted daily life and prompted international ripple effects such as airlines suspending flights to Moscow, which will shape both military choices and negotiations.