Russia says it downed over 1,000 Ukrainian drones as parliamentary vote ends

ASM, Philippine Canadian Inquirer
September 21, 2026

Photo courtesy: AP News

Russia said it intercepted more than 1,000 Ukrainian drones overnight into Sunday, including hundreds headed toward Moscow, as the country concluded the third and final day of its parliamentary elections.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces shot down 1,110 Ukrainian drones across Russian territory, the Black Sea and Crimea. The figure was provided by the Russian military and could not be independently verified.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 450 drones were destroyed while heading toward the Russian capital, describing the assault as the largest drone attack Moscow had faced.

Sobyanin said the attack damaged the Moscow Oil Refinery and a residential building. Across the wider Moscow region, two people were killed and 20 others were wounded, according to regional Gov. Andrei Vorobyov.

Sobyanin also accused Ukraine of attempting to disrupt Russia’s elections with the attack. His statement was an allegation by the Moscow mayor.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv used domestically produced drones and missiles to strike Russian oil and logistics facilities. He said the targets were connected to revenue and infrastructure supporting Russia’s war effort.

The attack came on the final day of Russia’s first parliamentary election since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.

Voting was also conducted in Crimea and four Ukrainian regions that Moscow claims to have annexed but does not fully control. Ukraine has denounced the voting held in occupied Ukrainian territories as illegal.

The three-day vote ended Sunday. Early returns reported Monday showed the Kremlin-aligned United Russia party with nearly 58 percent of the party-list vote after about 58 percent of precincts had been counted, according to Russia’s Central Election Commission.