In the early hours of Monday, Russia claimed to have shot down two Ukrainian drones over Moscow, one of which crashed not far from the defense ministry in the heart of the city.
There were no casualties, according to officials, as the drones only hit non-residential structures in the city.
After promising to “retaliate” after a Russian missile attack on the Black Sea port of Odesa, Kyiv made the attack a day later.
“A Kyiv regime attempt to carry out a terrorist act using two drones on objects on the territory of the city of Moscow was stopped,” Russia’s defence ministry said.
“Two Ukrainian drones were suppressed and crashed. There are no casualties.”
One drone crashed in Komsomolsky Prospekt, close to the defense ministry, according to the TASS news agency, and another struck a business center on Likhacheva Street, close to one of Moscow’s key ring roads.
At the scene, where police had cordoned off Komsomolsky Prospekt, AFP reporters observed a structure with a broken roof.
A police officer told an AFP reporter to stop filming or risk being detained as there were numerous police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances visible.
“I wasn’t asleep. It was 3:39am. The house really shook,” Vladimir, a 70-year-old local resident, told AFP about the moment of impact.
“It is scandalous that a Ukrainian drone almost flew into the defence ministry,” said Vladimir, who declined to give his last name, as he took pictures at the scene.
Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of Moscow, reported that the drone attacks took place about 4:00 am local time (0100 GMT).
He stated that emergency personnel were on the scene and that there were no casualties.
A video of the business center with damage to the towering building’s top was published by the news agency RIA Novosti.
The surrounding road was blocked off.
Although Moscow and its surroundings are about 500 kilometers (310 miles) from the Ukrainian border, this year has seen a number of drone strikes, one of which even reached the Kremlin in May.
Russia claimed earlier this month to have shot down five Ukrainian drones responsible for interfering with operations at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport.
