Ukraine strikes Russian energy facilities near border

Russia said on Monday that it had shot down 31 Ukrainian drones overnight over several Russian regions and annexed Crimea.

"During the night new attempts by the Kyiv regime to carry out terrorist attacks with the help of aerial drones... against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation were foiled," the defense ministry said in a statement on the Telegram social media channel.

A security source in Kyiv told AFP that Ukrainian forces struck an oil terminal and electrical substation in western Russia.

The source in the defense sector said that drones had carried out successful attacks on an oil terminal in the Belgorod region and an electrical substation in the Lipetsk region.

Twelve drones were shot down over the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine and where a Ukrainian strike had killed 15 people on Sunday, the Russian defense ministry said.

Eight drones were destroyed over the region of Kursk, also bordering Ukraine, and four were intercepted over the neighbouring region of Lipetsk, it said.

Seven drones and four Storm Shadow missiles were destroyed over Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Ukraine has upped its attacks on Russian territory over the past several months.

Russian forces have repeatedly targeted Ukrainian territory since Moscow first sent troops into its neighbour in February 2022.