MOSCOW, April 1. /TASS/. Russian air defenses intercepted nine rockets and downed five Ukrainian drones in the past day, Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov said at a briefing on Saturday.

"Air defenses intercepted nine HIMARS and Smerch rockets in the past 24 hours. In addition, five Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were downed near Valeryanovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, Gulyaipole and Novoukrainskoye in the Zaporozhye Region, and Krynki in the Kherson Region," he specified.

According to Konashenkov, a total of 405 aircraft, 228 helicopters, 3,630 drones, 415 missile systems, 8,497 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,077 multiple rocket launchers, 4,478 field artillery mounts and mortars, as well as 9,247 special military motor vehicles have been destroyed since the start of Russia’s special military operation.