Ukraine shoots down Russian fighter jets, aircraft: Kyiv

KYIV, Ukraine – Ukraine has shot down two Russian fighter jets, an IL-76 aircraft and a helicopter, Ukrainian officials said Saturday.

The head of the Vinnytsia Regional State Administration, Serhiy Borzov, said on social media that Ukraine shot down a Russian SU-25 fighter jet near Kalynivka in the Vinnytsia region.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces also said on Facebook that Ukrainian air defense systems shot down an IL-76 aircraft carrying paratroopers from the Russian airborne troops in the Vasylkiv region.

Located near Kyiv, Vasylkiv is 35 kilometers (22 miles) from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

Ukrainian Air Force likewise said that the country’s S-300 air defense missile system shot down a Russian helicopter and a SU-25 fighter jet in Donbas.

Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine entered its third day Saturday, with the latest reports indicating that Russian troops were heading toward the capital, Kyiv, from several directions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the military intervention Thursday, days after recognizing two separatist-held enclaves in eastern Ukraine.

He claimed that Moscow had no plan to occupy the neighboring country, but wanted to “demilitarize” and “denazify” Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of trying to install a puppet government and said Ukrainians will defend their country against Russian aggression. (Anadolu)