Moscow residents learn to live with drone strikes

Strolling in Moscow on a summer's day as pop music blared from a cafe, Tigran is one of the capital's residents who say they have come to terms with a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks.

Day-to-day life in the city of some 12 million people has changed little since the Kremlin launched attack on Ukraine last February, upending the lives of millions of Ukrainians.

But a recent uptick in aerial assaults have hit the capital's financial district, ripped holes in commercial buildings and even struck the Kremlin, a reminder of hostilities playing out hundreds of kilometres away.

Still, some residents have accepted with a shrug the ripple effect of the conflict in Ukraine.

"Living in Moscow isn't scary," Tigran, a sunglass-wearing 40-year-old who declined to give his last name, told AFP. "I feel safe."

The attacks point to a broader phenomenon of how crucial drones have become for both sides, being deployed on an unprecedented scale for reconnaissance and precision artillery targeting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose country has weathered waves of assaults from Iran-made attack drones, warned late last month that "war" was coming Russia.

In the weeks since, Moscow has suffered at least eight aerial attacks that Russian authorities have blamed on Kyiv.

Residents voiced confidence in the military's ability to intercept them.

Konstantin, a 70-year-old retiree who also declined to give his last name, told AFP he felt "absolutely calm", citing his trust in the army.

"There are enough personnel and equipment," he said, referring to air defence systems around Moscow.

Authorities have reported those systems increasing ability to repel the wave of assaults, and have claimed the drones have caused relatively little damage.

Since the Kremlin strike in May, the Russian defence ministry has said most attacks have been foiled by electronic air defence systems.

"The most important thing is that they stay alert. The rest doesn't matter," Konstantin said, referring to Russian forces.

He however did complain that the electronic jamming techniques used to down Ukrainian drones were interfering with his car's navigation system.

"It's hard without a navigator in Moscow," he said.

Apart from minor inconveniences, like difficulties getting around the city or repair work at drone crash sites, analysts also said the Ukrainian aerial attacks were having little impact.

"I think that our Russian compatriots are going against Russia, they are launching these drones," she said.