MOSCOW — A senior Russian general has died in a car bombing in the Russian city of Balashikha on Friday, according to authorities, with news of the blast breaking just before US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Witkoff was received by Putin at the Kremlin early on Friday afternoon, the Russian state news agency Tass reported, saying the US envoy has also met with senior Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev.
This is Witkoff’s fourth trip to Russia since Trump came back into the office in January, and the second one this month.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow was “ready to reach a deal” on ending the war in Ukraine in an interview with CBS News on Thursday, but added that there were still some specific points that needed to be “fine-tuned.”
Friday’s highly anticipated meeting took place soon after the announcement that General Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, had been killed in the explosion of a Volkswagen Golf in Balashikha, which lies less than 20 miles east of Moscow.
Russia’s Investigative Committee confirmed Moskalik’s death, adding that the blast was caused by an improvised explosive device packed with shrapnel.
The influential Russian military blog Rybar said Moskalik was not in the car when it exploded but was close to it after walking out of a nearby building. CNN can not independently verify this report.
Little is known about Moskalik, who held the rank of Lieutenant General.
Rybar described him as “competent and demanding” and said “he was not well liked” because he was “tough on his subordinates.”
Russia’s Investigative Committee said it has opened a criminal probe into the explosion. It added that an investigative team, including forensic experts and law enforcement officers, had begun examining the scene.
Tass earlier reported that the explosive device was “homemade.”
Friday’s reported blast comes two days after a fire broke out at an underground car park in Moscow’s business district following an explosion there. — CNN
