Zelenskyy proposes Russia ceasefire ahead of US envoys' Kyiv visit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed a ceasefire with Russia as US envoys prepare to visit Kyiv, hoping to host them in the coming days. The proposal comes amid heightened tensions following a Russian drone strike on Ukraine's SBU security service headquarters. The daytime drone strike on Friday hit the SBU's central building on Volodymyrska Street in Kyiv, which Zelenskyy said targeted the personal office of the SBU chief. He instructed the SBU to deliver an "appropriate, tangible response," while Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga called it a "major escalation." The attack occurred two days before US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were expected to visit Kyiv for the first time. Russia has intensified daytime strikes on Ukraine recently, using jet-powered drones harder to intercept, though attacks on heavily fortified central Kyiv government buildings remain rare. US-led diplomatic efforts to end the four-and-a-half-year invasion have stalled as Washington shifts focus to Iran, with the conflict remaining Europe's deadliest since World War II.