US says Russia yet to achieve air superiority over Ukraine

WASHINGTON

A senior defense official said Friday the US assesses that Russia is yet to achieve air superiority over Ukraine amid its military intervention in the former Soviet republic.

"Ukrainian air missile defense systems are still working though they were degraded by strikes," said the US official at a teleconference. "They still have air missile defense capability, including aircraft, not just missile defense, but they also have aircraft in the air that continue to engage and deny air access to Russian aircraft."

The official also said Russian forces are "meeting more resistance than they expected".

Russia's military intervention in Ukraine entered its second day on Friday, with the latest reports indicating that Russian troops were heading toward the capital Kyiv from several directions.

Putin ordered the attack early Thursday, just days after recognizing two separatist-held enclaves in eastern Ukraine. He claimed that Moscow had no plan to occupy the neighboring country, but wanted to "demilitarize" and "denazify" Ukraine.

On the first day of the operation, more than 130 people, including civilians, were killed, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

* Kasim Ileri contributed to the story