A Russian military intelligence figure was shot in the nation's capital city on Friday, according to The Associated Press.
Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev was shot multiple times by an unidentified attacker at an apartment building and was hospitalized, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko noted in a statement, according to the AP.
President Vladimir Putin was informed about the attack, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who added that law enforcement agencies need to step up protection of senior military officers during the conflict in Ukraine.
The AP reported that the business daily Kommersant indicated that the shooter posed as a delivery person, shooting Alekseyev twice in the stairway of his apartment building, injuring him in the foot and arm. The Russian figure attempted to wrest the weapon away and was shot again in the chest before the perpetrator fled, the report noted, according to the AP.
President Donald Trump's administration has been striving to help broker peace between Russia and Ukraine.
The warring nations agreed to a prisoner swap this week, according to readouts posted on X by U.S. special presidential envoy for peace missions Steve Witkoff and Ukraine's national security and defense council minister Rustem Umerov.
"Over February 4 and 5, delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and the Russian Federation met for the second trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi to advance efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The discussions were constructive and focused on how to create the conditions for a durable peace," the readouts state.
"The delegations reached agreement whereby the Russian Federation and Ukraine will each release 157 Prisoners of War. This is the first exchange in the last five months," the readouts note.
The Associated Press contributed to this report