Russia’s air defenses downed two Ukrainian UAVs off the Black Sea coast overnight, the Defense Ministry has reported. Authorities in Krasnodar Region have confirmed the incident, saying that it did not cause any casualties or material damage.
Writing on its Telegram channel on Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry said an “attempted terrorist attack” involving plane-type UAVs was foiled. The statement accused the Ukrainian military of being behind the incursion.
Military officials revealed that air defenses had shot down two drones off the southeast coast of Crimea and in the Tuapse district of Krasnodar Region.
The head of that district, Sergey Boiko, confirmed on his Telegram channel that “two air defense [missiles] were launched in Tuapse toward the sea.” He added that “according to preliminary data, the target was an aerial drone [which] was destroyed.” The official noted that the thwarted attack had not led to any casualties or damage to local infrastructure.
In the early hours of Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry said its air defense forces had “destroyed” some 19 drones over Crimea and the Black Sea. The message added that similar, although smaller in scale, attacks had been thwarted over the Kursk, Belgorod and Oryol Regions.
Telegram channel Mash reported that residents had heard “explosions” and the sound of anti-aircraft weapons in several locations of Crimea, describing the drone raid as the “largest yet.”
Over the last weekend, a massive drone attack was reported across several Russian regions, with Crimea being the most intensively targeted. UAVs were also shot down over Moscow Region as well as the Belgorod and Voronezh Regions, the Defense Ministry said at the time.
Kiev has stepped up drone and missile attacks on Russian territory in recent months, amid the apparent failure of its counteroffensive to make any significant territorial gains.