The Russian Defense Ministry has said the vehicle was taken out by an explosives-laden drone
The Defense Ministry in Moscow has released footage purportedly showing the moment a Russian kamikaze drone blew up a Ukrainian armored vehicle in Russia’s Kursk Region.
Kiev launched its incursion into the region on August 6 and initially made some gains. Ukrainian officials claimed the operation was aimed at improving the country’s standing for possible peace talks with Moscow. The Russian Defense Ministry soon reported that the advance had been halted and that its troops had begun pushing the Ukrainian military back.
In a post on its Telegram channel on Wednesday, the ministry wrote that the Ukrainian armored vehicle was spotted by a reconnaissance UAV. After analyzing the data, Russian marines deployed an explosives-laden drone to take out the hardware, which its crew had tried to hide in a wooded area. According to the ministry, the attack resulted in a direct hit.
In a separate post on Telegram on Wednesday, Russian military officials reported that their personnel, supported by the Air Force as well as artillery fire, had repelled three attempts by Ukrainian troops to cross the border. In addition, strikes were carried out against Ukrainian reserves in Sumy Region just across the border, the ministry wrote.
Aside from the armored vehicle destroyed in the kamikaze drone strike, Russian forces also took out an infantry fighting vehicle, a Bogdana self-propelled artillery gun, and two electronic warfare stations, according to the statement.
The post estimated that the Ukrainian military has lost more than 300 troops over the past 24 hours in Kursk Region, with seven more surrendering.