Russian Air Defense Downs 2 Ukrainian Drones Near Crimea, Moscow Region

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian air defense suppressed two Ukrainian drones near Crimea by means of electronic warfare, as a result of which they fell into the water 40 kilometers (24.8 miles) northwest of the peninsula, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

"On August 21, at about 23:00 Moscow time [20:00 GMT], an attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack with aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles was thwarted. Two Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were detected and suppressed by electronic warfare by the air defense forces," the ministry said.

The ministry added that drones, having lost control, "crashed over the Black Sea, 40 kilometers northwest of the Crimean peninsula."

Not long afterward, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin detailed that air defense forces had also shot down two strike drones on their way to the Russian capital. "The air defense shot down two strike drones. One in the Krasnogorsk region, the other in the Chastsy region. Special services went to the scene of the incident," Sobyanin said on Telegram.

At the same time, the Russian Defense Ministry said that another two drones were suppressed by the means of electronic warfare in Russia’s Bryansk Region. The ministry added that no one was injured due to drone crashes.

"An attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles was thwarted tonight. Two UAVs were detected by air defense systems and suppressed by electronic warfare systems, they crashed over the territory of the Bryansk Region. Two UAVs were detected and destroyed by air defense systems over the territory of the Moscow Region," the ministry stated.

The latest foiled attack comes on the heels of efforts undertaken earlier Monday in the Belgorod Region and the Moscow Region by Kiev forces; in fact, Ukraine has continued to launch drones into Russian territory since the start of its fruitless counteroffensive in early June.