KYIV: The Ukrainian military on Thursday claimed that it had downed a record number of Russian fighter jets in February.
The development comes at a time when Ukrainian ground forces are under immense pressure in the east part of the country. However, the Western media could not verify the Ukrainian claims as Russian forces do not comment on such reports.
Ukrainian defense ministry said that its air force had achieved the greatest results in downing Russian fighter jets since October 2022 adding that 10 SU-34, two Su-35 fighter jets, and an A-50 aircraft had been destroyed in February.
Ukrainian ground forces commander Oleksandr Pavliuk said three Su-34s were downed overnight when they were launching guided missiles at Ukraine’s infantry positions in the east part of the country.
The claims could not be verified, but Russian military bloggers had mentioned the downing of the A-50 aircraft.
Military bloggers from Russia, who have sources in the armed forces, frequently publish exclusive content, contrary to government claims and Russian state media outlets.
The British defense ministry has also reported that two A-50 downed, saying such incidents forced Russian policymakers to consider safer operating locations.
Ukraine is also expecting the delivery of F-16 fighter jets supplied by its allies in the West.
