Kyiv: Ukraine announced on Wednesday that its air defense systems successfully intercepted 74 out of 95 drones launched by Russia since Tuesday evening, while Moscow reported the destruction of 26 Ukrainian drones over its own territory during the same period.

According to Anadolu Agency, Ukraine's air force detailed that Russian forces initiated the drone attacks using Shahed attack UAVs and simulator drones from multiple locations including Kursk, Millerovo, Orel, Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia, and Chauda in the occupied Crimean peninsula. By 0600GMT on August 27, Ukrainian forces had neutralized 74 of these drones across the northern, southern, and eastern regions of the country. However, 21 drones managed to strike nine different locations.

The Ukrainian Energy Ministry reported that critical energy and gas transmission infrastructures in six regions-Sumy, Poltava, Donetsk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhia-were targeted. In Sumy, power outages occurred after a drone attack damaged equipment at a key substation around 2200GMT. A comprehensive attack on gas facilities in the Poltava region resulted in significant damage.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry stated that its air defense units successfully downed 26 Ukrainian UAVs overnight. The breakdown of destroyed UAVs included 15 over the Rostov region, four over Oryol, three over Belgorod, two over Bryansk, and two over Kursk.

The acting governor of the Rostov region, Yuri Slyusar, confirmed that drones were intercepted in several areas, including Rostov-on-Don, Taganrog, Novoshakhtinsk, and four districts. He reported that while there was shrapnel damage to several private houses and vehicles, preliminary data indicated no injuries. He assured that assessments and evaluations of the damage would continue throughout the day.