A Global Hawk reconnaissance drone that has been designated by some as the most powerful and capable in the US military, has come unprecedentedly close to Crimea during the latest Ukrainian strikes against targets of the Russian occupiers, the Kyiv Post reported.
The US drone was flying southwest of Russia's main military base in the Crimean city of Sevastopol three hours before Ukrainian forces fired missiles at Russian military targets.
The drone circled the area for about seven hours before flying back to its base in Sigonella, Italy. The Global Hawk is the US's flagship reconnaissance drone. US flight planners often send it over the Black Sea, but it was the first time it was so close to Crimea during strikes by Ukrainian forces against the Russian army.
Reports say Russian military facilities have been attacked, some say airports and aircraft, and others say Russian air defense systems - long a prime target for Ukrainian strike planners - have been hit.
p>The independent Russian news agency ASTRA reported that at least two S-300 missile launchers and four radar stations were destroyed in the attacks. Officials appointed by Putin said those strikes caused no damage and all missiles were downed.
According to independent sources, however, Russia's claims that there were no casualties in the attack are a lie.
Ukraine has struck Russian anti-aircraft missile systems in the occupied Crimean peninsula, the Ukrainian military claims. “As a result of the strikes, two radars of the S-300 and S-400 complexes were destroyed. "The information about the third radar is still being specified," the Ukrainian General Staff wrote in the "Telegram" application. In the past two years since Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has carried out numerous air and naval strikes against Russian targets in Crimea and inflicted significant damage on Moscow's fleet in the Black Sea.