Russia said Thursday it had destroyed 19 Ukrainian drones overnight above the Moscow-annexed Crimean peninsula and the surrounding Black Sea.
Moscow’s defence ministry said on the messaging platform Telegram that a Ukrainian attempted attack with aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles had been “thwarted”.
It said three other UAV drones had also been downed elsewhere in separate attacks.
“Air defence systems destroyed 19 Ukrainian UAVs over the Black Sea and the territory of the Republic of Crimea, and one each over the territories of Kursk, Belgorod and Oryol regions,” the ministry said.
The Belgorod and Kursk regions border eastern Ukraine, while Oryol is closer to the capital.
Crimea has been targeted by Ukraine throughout Russia’s offensive but attacks there have recently intensified as Kyiv vows to recapture the Black Sea peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014.
On August 25, Russia said it had downed 42 drones over Crimea.