Russia, Ukraine exchange claims over downed military plane
MOSCOW: Russian and Ukrainian military officials both reported downing enemy aircraft on Sunday in different sectors of their 1,000-kilometre-long (621-mile) front in their 22-month-old war.
Ukrainian air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said Ukrainian anti-aircraft units had attacked a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber near the Russian-held city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov in southern Ukraine.
Oleshchuk, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the plane had not returned to its base, but gave no further details.
Russia’s Defense Ministry earlier said its air defense systems had shot down four Ukrainian military aircraft in the past 24 hours — just two days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kiev had shot down three Russian planes.
In its daily dispatch, the Russian Defense Ministry said its air defense shot down three Su-27 fighters and one Su-24 strategic bomber in the Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions of southeastern Ukraine. The dispatch did not provide any further details.
On Friday, Zelensky said the country’s military shot down three Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers on the southern front, calling it a success in the conflict.
Air Force commander Oleshchuk also said the planes had been shot down. Reuters was not immediately able to confirm battlefield reports from either side.
