On March 13, Russia announced that 67 drones attacked six regions. The Russian Defense Ministry initially said that overnight and in the morning, air defense systems shot down or intercepted 58 drones over six regions.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the largest number of drones - 29 - were destroyed over the Voronezh region. In addition, 11 drones were allegedly shot down over the Belgorod region, 8 over Bryansk and Kursk, and one over the Leningrad and Ryazan regions of the Russian Federation.
Later, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the alleged interception of seven more drones - six over the Voronezh region and one over the Belgorod region. And closer to 11:00 a.m., they announced the alleged downing of two more UAVs over the Belgorod region.
Drones also fell on the territory of the Novoshakhtinsk petroleum products plant in the Rostov region. The company's technological facilities have been shut down.
According to Army TV sources, the Ukrainian Security Service attacked three oil refineries in Russia with drones. They are located in Ryazan, Kstovo, and Kirishi in the Leningrad region and were among the top 5 largest refineries in Russia.
The Pentagon is open to transferring ATACMS missiles with a range of more than 290 km to Ukraine, Censor.NET reports citing The Wall Street Journal.
Earlier, Pentagon officials insisted that the US Armed Forces should retain all their long-range ATACMS missiles to meet their own military needs.
However, now, the US Defense Department is open to transferring longer-range ATACMS, as the US military can now use the next generation of Precision Strike Missile.
At the same time, they did not specify whether US President Joe Biden would approve the transfer of ATACMS missiles with a longer range than the one already received by Ukraine.
Advisor to the Czech Prime Minister Tomáš Pojar says that artillery shells to be purchased under the Czech initiative are likely to be delivered to Ukraine in June.
We are talking about 300,000 shells, the purchase of which has been confirmed, and another 200,000 that were promised. The Czech Republic's goal is to supply ammunition to Ukraine this year.
“I do not want to promise the impossible because even in an ideal situation, it will take months to successfully get the material to the frontline, where it is most needed,” said PM Petr Fiala during the conference.
The first batches of ammunition could arrive in Ukraine in June.
“The promised money has to come, and the contracts must be made. At the point when the contract is concluded, it will take several weeks to get it (the ammunition) to Ukraine,” he said.
“From June onwards, supplies could flow,” he added.
The settlements that Russia tried to seize remained under the control of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi spoke from the frontline about the situation on the battlefield. In two weeks of fierce fighting, the Russians have not managed to capture a single settlement, he said.
According to the Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief, the overall operational situation on the Eastern Front remains difficult. The Russian troops continue to conduct offensive actions, but enemy activity in other parts of the front has significantly decreased. This is likely due to heavy losses in the Russian army.
"During two weeks of fierce fighting, the enemy suffered extremely high losses. However, all the settlements they tried to capture remained under our control," the chief emphasized.