Moscow, May 20 (UNI) The Russian air defense units have intercepted 12 US-made HIMARS rockets and UK-made Storm Shadow missiles over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday.

"Air defense forces intercepted 12 rockets of HIMARS multiple rocket launchers and Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles, as well as one US-made GBU-32 guided aerial bomb over the past day," the ministry said.

A total of 18 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been destroyed in the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR).

The Ukrainian armed forces lost up to 210 troops in the Donetsk direction over the past day, as well as eight units of military equipment, including one tank, five vehicles, a Polish-made Krab self-propelled tracked howitzer and a D-20 howitzer. This is in addition to over 300 Ukrainian troops destroyed in other combat areas, according to the Russia ministry's statement.

Furthermore, two depots with ammunition as well as Ukriainian rocket and artillery weapons have been destroyed near Avdiivka village in the DPR, the ministry added.