Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Feb 24: The Ukrainian military claimed on Thursday to have shot downed five Russian planes and a helicopter in the east of the country near a rebel-held enclave.
“According to the Joint Forces Command, today in the area of the Joint Forces operation, five planes and a helicopter of the aggressors were shot down,” the army general staff said.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry stated that Ukraine’s air defences have been neutralised.
“Military infrastructure at Ukrainian army air bases has been rendered out of action,” the defence ministry said in a statement carried by news agencies.
Russia is said to have initiated an artillery bombardment along Ukraine’s northern border with Russia and Belarus, according to reports. Ukrainian military retaliated with a barrage of bullets.
Notably, the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv is about 75 km (50 miles) south of the border with Belarus.
