Russia's air defence systems destroyed 36 drones that Ukraine launched overnight targeting several regions in Russia's southwest, the Russian defence ministry said yesterday.

Fifteen drones were destroyed over the Kursk region that borders Ukraine and nine over the Lipetsk region, several hundred kilometres south of Moscow, the defence ministry said on the Telegram messaging app.

Four drones were destroyed each over the Voronezh and Bryansk regions in southwestern Russia and two each over the nearby Oryol and Belgorod regions.

The governors of the Lipetsk and Bryansk regions said on their Telegram channels that there were no injuries or extensive damage as a result of the attacks, reports Reuters.

Kyiv has said attacks on Russia's military, transport and energy infrastructure are in response to Moscow's attacks on Ukraine's territory since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Meanwhile, Russia yesterday also claimed two more east Ukrainian villages as its forces have had the upper hand over Kyiv on the battlefield for months.

Moscow has claimed new villages in the east of Ukraine regularly for weeks, as outgunned and outmanned Ukrainian forces struggle to hold them back.