A drone. Photo: Oleksandr Husiev / Zuma Press
Russia’s Ministry of Defence reported that on the night of 22 December, its air defence allegedly destroyed 42 unmanned aerial vehicles, which it claims are Ukrainian. This was stated by the ministry’s press service in its morning report.
“Last night, Russian air defence systems destroyed 42 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles,” the Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement.
According to the Russian side, most of the drones – 20 – were shot down over the Oryol region. Another eight UAVs were destroyed over Bryansk and Rostov regions, five over Kursk region, and one in Krasnodar region.
Ukraine has traditionally not commented on such statements by the Russian side, adhering to a policy of information restraint regarding its military operations.
This is not the first time that Russia has reported massive drone attacks. Previously, such claims have been made in response to rising tensions in the border regions, but there is usually no independent confirmation of such data.
