Air Force: Ukraine downs 18 Russian drones

Ukrainian air defense units shot down all of the 18 Russian attack drones overnight on May 14, the Air Force said in its morning update.

The drones were launched from the occupied Crimean peninsula. Missile units and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Air Force intercepted the drones over Kyiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Khmelnytsky oblasts.

Russian forces also targeted Ukraine with at least one Iskander-M ballistic missile. It is unclear whether the missile was downed.

Drone attacks are a daily occurrence in Ukraine, affecting various regions across the country.  Ukraine suffers a critical shortage of air defense systems due to delays caused by Congress in passing U.S. military aid, giving Russian forces the opportunity to launch renewed assaults on energy infrastructure.

Ukraine's ability to intercept Russian missile attacks has declined, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal on May 13.

Around 46% of missiles were intercepted in the last six months, compared to 73% intercepted in the preceding six-month period. Last month, 30% of missiles were intercepted.

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