Russia Claims to Have Downed 75 Drones Launched by Ukraine

UNSPLASH/Kaleb Kendall ILLUSTRATION

JAKARTA - Russia said it shot down 75 drones launched by Ukraine. Some of them were launched near the Tuapse oil refinery

The Russian Defense Ministry said on the Telegram messaging app that Ukrainian drones were destroyed by Russian air defense systems overnight.

The details are: eight near the Black Sea city of Tuapse where Russia's major oil company Rosneft (ROSN.MM) operates, 47 in the Rostov region in southwestern Russia, 17 over the Black and Azov seas, eight over the Krasnodar region, where Tuapse is located, and one drone over the Belgorod, Voronezh and Smolensk regions.

The ministry, as quoted by Reuters on Monday, July 22, did not say whether its defense systems destroyed the drones, or whether the attacks caused damage.

Sergei Boiko, the head of the Tuapse district in the Krasnodar region, said Telegram infrastructure and residential buildings were not damaged.

Russian officials rarely reveal the full extent of the damage caused by Ukrainian attacks. The Tuapse refinery has been the target of several Ukrainian airstrikes since Russia launched a war against its smaller neighbor in 2022.

Russia’s SHOT and Mash Telegram news channels reported that a series of explosions were heard near the refinery early Monday.

Reuters could not independently verify the Russian report. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Kyiv has often said that attacks on Russia's military, energy and transport infrastructure are a response to Russia's continued attacks on Ukrainian territory.