Russia said it shot down three Ukrainian drones flying toward Moscow and its surrounding regions on Wednesday, in the sixth consecutive day of attacks on the capital region.
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, Russian air defense systems shot down two drones over the Mozhaisk and Khimki districts, the country’s defense ministry said on Telegram. A third drone was jammed with electronic warfare and lost control, hitting a building under construction in the Moscow City district. According to the ministry, there were no casualties.
“City emergency services are inspecting the area in the perimeter of the City for the consequences of the strike,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on his Telegram channel. “Several windows in two neighboring five-story buildings were blown out.”
Russian state-owned media outlet RIA Novosti reported that the third drone damaged the glazing of a Moscow tower and windows on two floors of a residential building. Wreckage of the drone that fell over the Khimki region also caused minor damage to a private house and a non-residential building.
Russia accused Kyiv of attempting to carry out a “terrorist attack,” but Ukraine did not immediately comment on the attacks or claim responsibility.
RIA also reported that air traffic at Moscow’s Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo airports was disrupted, with several delays and cancelations. Air traffic later returned to normal, according to Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency.
A separate drone attack in Russia’s Belgorod region near the Ukrainian border killed three people on Wednesday, the governor of the region said.
These are the latest in a series of drone attacks that have increasingly targeted Russian territory, including its capital in recent weeks. Wednesday’s strike was the sixth straight night of aerial attacks on the Moscow region, according to AFP.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson from the U.S. State Department said the United States does not encourage attacks inside Russian territory, but that it is Ukraine’s choice how it defends itself from Russia.
Claudia Chiappa
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