MOSCOW, May 18. /TASS/. Russian attack drones supported by artillery units eliminated a Ukrainian firing position of US-made 155mm M777 howitzers near the settlement of Podgornoye, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.

"In the area of the settlement of Podgornoye, the Russian teams of unmanned aerial vehicles and artillery reconnaissance systems established the coordinates of a firing position of US-made 155mm M777 howitzers used by the Ukrainian military. The operators of unmanned aerial vehicles delivered a missile strike on the firing position of the battery of American howitzers, damaging several guns," the ministry said in a statement.

After the missile strikes by the Russian drones, the Ukrainian forces tried to hide in a forest and shelter the towed M777 howitzers there, the ministry said.

"As soon as the Ukrainian militants concentrated prime movers and guns in the forest, they came under an artillery strike. All the equipment and American howitzers were eliminated," the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The ministry also uploaded a video made from a drone showing the destruction of US howitzers.

The M777 is a 155mm field howitzer developed by the British defense firm BAE Systems. It can fire Excalibur guided shells and has an effective firing range of 40 km. The M777 howitzer is operational with the ground forces of the United States, Australia, Canada, India, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine. The howitzer was first employed in combat during the war in Afghanistan.