Ukraine says it has shot down three more Russian warplanes

[February 29, 2024]  KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine's military said on Thursday it had shot down three more Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers, the latest successes it has reported against Moscow's air force. 

"After successful combat operations against an enemy aircraft in the night on Feb. 29, two more Russian aircraft were destroyed: Su-34 fighter-bombers in the Avdiivka and Mariupol sectors," Army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on the Telegram messaging app.

Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi attends a meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and newly appointed top military commanders, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 10, 2024. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

Russia, which began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago, did not immediately comment on Syrskyi's remarks. Reuters could not immediately verify his comments.

Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine fell to Russian forces this month after a long battle. Russia took full control of the southeastern port city of Mariupol in May 2022.

The Ukrainian military said last week that Russia had lost six warplanes in three days.

Since receiving advanced Western air defence systems, Ukraine's military has posed a greater threat to Russian aviation in areas near the front lines although it has suffered recent setbacks on the eastern battlefields.

Kyiv accuses Moscow of hitting civilian targets using Su-34s, in particular in the southern Kherson region, as well as in attacking Ukraine's front lines.

Russia has denied deliberately targeting civilians although many have been killed in its strikes.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

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