Trump's Envoy Was In Moscow As Ukraine Attacked Capital With Drones
Moscow has been targeted by a wave of Ukrainian drones for a second time this week, with the defense ministry saying at least four unmanned aircraft were downed in the attack near the capital.
Falling debris reportedly caused significant damage, resulting in emergency crews dispatched, with no reports of injuries. Widely circulating images showed damage to apartment buildings and houses in and around Moscow, however.
The attack was accompanied by a direct overnight hit on Russia's southern Krasnodar region, unleashing a large fire at the Tuapse oil refinery on the Black Sea coast. The prior March 11 drone attack killed three people.
Krasnodar regional Governor Veniamin Kondratyev in a statement described that a large fire spread to over 1,000 square meters at the facility, which is among Russia's largest.
In total, across Russia the fresh assault from Ukraine saw 32 drones intercepted across six regions overnight. Ukraine's government acknowledged the attack wave which "caused significant damage to Russia’s budget, reducing its ability to finance the war in Ukraine and weakening the military potential of the Russian army."
Crucially, the attack happened while Trump's special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff was still in Moscow, though he safely departed the country as of later in the day Friday.
Result of attack on Rosneft-owned oil refinery in Tuapse overnight...
Ukraine attacks with drones Rosneft-owned oil refinery in Tuapse in overnight.
— Geopolitical Space (@warleywa28) March 14, 2025
Two Russian oblasts were targeted, allegedly hit an S-300/S-400 missile depot, and Moscow.#Ukraine#UkraineWar #Russia#Moscow#Tuapse #droneattack#Putin#Zelensky pic.twitter.com/aZQBu30ZT9
According to a summary of the Witkoff-Putin meeting:
Putin met with Witkoff late Thursday after having kept the American waiting since roughly 12:30 p.m., according to flight tracking data and Russian reports, but ultimately sent him home with “signals” for Trump, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told reporters.
“A lot still needs to be done,” Peskov said of the cease-fire agreement, noting that Witkoff “presented additional information to the Russian side.”
“We had very good and productive discussions with President Vladimir Putin of Russia yesterday, and there is a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Friday morning.
Trump’s proposal was straightforward: Russia and Ukraine would halt all conflict for 30 days and conduct a prisoner exchange as signs of both parties’ commitments to finding a peaceful resolution.
Witkoff departed Moscow Friday without a ceasefire deal in hand, after the Russia President demanded that during the 30-day pause in fighting that American intelligence to Kiev must be cut off, and further asking that Ukraine not train or resupply forces during the temporary ceasefire.
Sky News reports, "According to footage posted of his motorcade leaving and returning to Moscow's Vnukovo airport, he was here for little more than 12 hours." The Trump special envoy had been kept waiting for 8 hours behind the scheduled time to see Putin.
But the reality is that if Ukraine felt boldness to attack Moscow with drones literally as Witkoff was still there overnight, it is a clear sign that Zelensky is not interested in this short-term initial truce sticking.
In the meantime European leaders are still trying to cobble together a plan that would see European troops deploy to Ukraine to enforce a ceasefire, which the Kremlin has said is an impossibility, and non-starter - as this would bring NATO troops directly to Russia's border and the front lines of the conflict.
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