Ukraine denies Russia’s statement on alleged downing of two warplanes

This was stated by the spokesman for Ukraine’s Air Force, Yuriy Ihnat, who spoke in an interview with RFE/RL.

"Of course, I do not confirm (the downing of warplanes - ed.). Every day they ‘destroy’ five of our planes as per their reports. So there’s no need to believe this one either. Su-24Ms belong to our tactical aviation brigade and are based in Starokostiantyniv. It is clear that now the aviation doesn’t stay grounded. Planes are deployed at operational airfields and fly on combat missions. Of course, Russia will try to impose on the audience an idea that they downed some aircraft. They destroy loads of planes according to their reporting. And it’s not even some media outlets or Telegram channels reporting such fake news but their official mouthpieces. If we believe those reports, it’s our entire fleet that they destroy each month. Now, they are already ‘destroying’ the F-16s. That's why you shouldn't believe Russian statements about some of our planes being downed," Ihnat said.

Responding to the question of whether the Novocherkassk large landing ship obliterated in Feodosia could have been used to transport weapons, the spokesman for the Air Force noted that "the explosion wasn’t caused by the detonation of something insignificant."

"This was an ammo detonation, a large landing ship is used to transport both equipment and weapons, as well as manpower. That is why it is called landing ships – they get loaded and move faster from one coast to the other. This ship could be used to transport cargo to the ports of the occupied territories, including in the Zaporizhzhia sector. It could as well carry munitions, including the Shahed kamikaze drones, to Feodosia or other ports. The enemy launches Shaheds all the time so the destruction of a large batch, let's hope it was the case, can give us a kind of carte blanche," the spokesman said.

Ihnat also reported that the Novocherkassk vessel was hit by cruise missiles.

"Now journalists will ask: were they domestically produced or supplied by partners? Every manufacturer wants to see the result of their work as this would be the ad for their product. We have Storm Shadows, we have Scalps in service, all supplied by partners. Of course, we would like to have Germany’s Taurus - cruise missiles with a longer range," Ihnat noted.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, at around 02:30 on December 26, Ukraine’s tactical bombers launched cruise missiles targeting Russian Black Sea Fleet’s large landing ship Novocherkassk in the Feodosia port.