Ukrainian forces intercept 1 cruise missile, 20 drones launched by Russia

Kyiv on Thursday released a statement saying that the Ukrainian forces thwarted a cruise projectile and 20 explosive drones that were launched by Russiain its latest nighttime attack.

However, three other projectiles hit "industrial installations" in the Dnipropetrovsk region in Ukraine's centre-east, it said.

The statement released by Kyiv came shortly after Moscow-installed governor of Crimea, Sergei Aksionov, said that the Russian forces had downed nine drones over its territory, without causing any casualties.

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"Last night and this morning, nine drones were detected above the Republic of Crimea territory," Aksionov said on Telegram.

"Six devices were shot down by air-defence forces" while three others were "deactivated" before hitting the ground, he said, adding that there were no victims.

Nonetheless, one of the drones did explode in a village in the centre of the peninsulathat broke the windows of several houses, he added.

As Ukraine pursues a counter-offensive against Russian forces, drone attacks in Crimea have increased. However, the annexation of these drone attacks by Moscow has not yet been recognised by the international community.

Kyiv has repeatedly articulated taking back Crimea as a part of its efforts to regain the territory since Moscow launched its invasion in February 2022.

Ukraine deliberately hit Kakhovka dam, claims Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday (June 13) that he believed Ukraine was responsible for the breach last week of the Kakhovka dam. While speaking during a televised meeting of Russian war correspondents and military bloggers, Putin said that the damage has been caused by Kyiv shelling the structure with HIMARS missile systems, which were supplied by the United States.

Putin said, "They used HIMARS rockets deliberately and many times to hit Kakhovka dam - that's the point. Maybe they had some kind of plant there. I don't know."

He added, "Maybe they added something insignificant once again - and destruction began. As we understand - we are not interested in this (Kakhovka dam destruction) for sure, because there are harsh consequences for territories we control and that are Russian."

Ukraine's losses close to 'catastrophic'

Putin claimed that Ukraine was suffering massive losses in its highly touted counter-offensive against Russian positions in Ukraine.

"Their losses are approaching a level that could be described as catastrophic," Putin said during a meeting.

Ukraine’s counter-offensive

On Monday, Kyiv claimed that it had taken control of seven villages in eastern and southern Ukraine that were initially occupied by the Russian forces over the last week.

Ukraine further said that it made small gains near the eastern city of Bakhmut after launching a long-awaited counteroffensive with Western weapons to claw back territory.

"Seven settlements were liberated," Deputy Defence Minister Ganna Malyar said on Telegram.

These are Lobkovo, Levadne and Novodarivka in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, she said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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