Drones attacked Moscow for the second time in a week with at least one hitting a central area not far from government buildings, as Russian news services reported US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s plane had left the country following talks.

After Ukraine staged its biggest-ever drone attack on Moscow, which coincided with the U.S.-Ukrainian talks in Saudi Arabia, VOA Russian spoke to regional experts who saw it as Kyiv's signal to Vladimir Putin to convince him to agree to a ceasefire.

Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow for a second time this week, with city authorities saying early Friday that air defense systems downed four unmanned aircraft near the Russian capital. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said emergency crews were dispatched to areas where debris from the intercepted drones had fallen.

Ceasefire efforts come at a time when Ukraine is fast losing ground on the battlefield amid a freeze in US military aid and intelligence sharing