Russia says it downed 660 Ukrainian drones overnight, one of the highest tallies of the war

Overnight barrage

Russian air defence systems destroyed 660 Ukrainian drones overnight on June 25-26, the defence ministry in Moscow announced. The drones were intercepted over more than a dozen regions, including the Moscow region, annexed Crimea, the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. The ministry described the tally as one of the highest since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. The previous night, Russia reported downing 269 drones.

Moscow under threat

Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said at least 47 drones heading for the capital were shot down. In a separate statement, he noted that 28 drones were destroyed within about an hour. Emergency crews were deployed to sites where debris fell, but no casualties or damage were reported in the city. In the Tula region, roughly 180 km south of Moscow, a drone attack injured one person in a residential area, according to governor Dimitri Milaïev.

Specialists of the emergency services are working where the debris fell.

Retaliatory strike on Kyiv

Hours later, a Russian missile attack on Kyiv injured at least two people, who received outpatient treatment, mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Fires broke out in warehouses in the Darnytskyi district in the southeast of the capital. Air raid sirens had sounded across the city before the strikes.

Strategic campaign

Ukraine has intensified long-range drone strikes on Russian territory in recent months, focusing on energy infrastructure such as refineries, oil depots and ports. Kyiv views these facilities as legitimate targets to cut the oil revenues Moscow uses to finance its war effort. Last week, a Ukrainian attack caused a large fire at a refinery in southeast Moscow. According to a recent report by Energy Intelligence, about one-third of Russia's oil refining capacity has been paralysed by Ukrainian strikes.