Drone incidents reported in Moscow and St. Petersburg, dozens of flights disrupted
Russian air defenses intercepted a drone headed toward Moscow on Aug. 23, according to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. He said fragments of the drone were being examined on the ground. No casualties were reported.
The Kyiv Independent couldn't immediately verify these claims.
In response to concerns over airspace safety, Russia’s federal aviation agency, Rosaviatsia, temporarily suspended operations at multiple airports in major cities of the Volga and Central regions of European Russia—including Izhevsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Penza, Tambov, and Ulyanovsk.
Ukrainian officials often say these drone strikes are intended to degrade Russia’s strike capabilities and bring the consequences of the war closer to those supporting the Kremlin’s aggression.
Authorities in St. Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest city, also reported significant flight delays as a result. Several Russian airlines, including Rossiya and Pobeda announced they were adjusting their schedules in response to the airspace restrictions.
Seaparately on the same day, two windows were damaged while shooting down a drone over the "Ogni Zaliva" residential complex in St. Petersburg’s Krasnoselsky district, Deputy Governor Yevgeny Razumishkin said via his Telegram channel.
St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov earlier reported that a drone had been intercepted in the Krasnoselsky district, with no injuries reported. Another drone was also reportedly downed in the city's Pushkinsky district.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that 32 drones had been intercepted and destroyed over several central regions during a three-hour window.
The reports come as both U.S. President Donald Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky advocate for a negotiated resolution to Russia’s war, now in its 12th year. However, past efforts at peace talks have repeatedly broken down due to the Kremlin’s ultimatums and rigid demands.
Zelensky has continued to push for a direct meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin without preconditions, arguing that such a step could offer a real opportunity to bring the full-scale war to an end.
