 Russia has reigned in its aerial presence over eastern Ukraine after sustaining double-digit aircraft losses in the past few weeks, according to a new assessment, as Moscow makes further gains westward across the frontlines in the war-torn country. Recent relatively high Russian aviation losses appear to be prompting a significant decrease in Russian aviation activity in eastern Ukraine, reported U.S. think tank, the Institute for the Study of War. Ukraine's military said at the end of February that its forces had destroyed 13 Russian aircraft since February 17. This included 10 Su-34 fighter bomber jets, two Su-35 jets and one Russian A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft, according to Newsweek. On last Saturday, Ukraine's air force then said it had downed a Russian Su-34 fighter bomber just one day after Kiev said it had taken out another Su-34 close to the Russian controlled southern city of Mariupol. Although difficult to pin down a precise figure for any Russian aircraft, a single A-50 radar detection plane is worth a ballpark figure of $300 million. Each Su-34 is thought to come with a price tag between approximately $36 and $50 million and in Su-35 costs in the region of $40 million. Figures from Ukraine's military show that Russia has lost 18 planes since the start of January, totaling approximately $150 million ahead of February 17. Added up, this puts Russia's aircraft losses since the start of 2024 at approximately $1 billion. Despite the size of Russia's air force, losing 15 aircraft in just a few weeks amounts to a punishing loss for Moscow. Along with a loss of expensive aircraft, Russia will also have lost vital expertise when pilots are killed as the jets come down. It is not clear how long Russia will pull back its aerial fleet, the ISW think tank said. Russia has advanced along the northeastern frontlines in recent weeks, including west and south of the Moscow-controlled city of Kremlin. Russia has also gained territory west of Avdiivka, which the Kremlin captured in mid-February. Moscow is likely attempting to reimpose air superiority around Avdiivka to support its tactical advances, judging that, continued offensive operations with air support outweigh the risk of losing more aircraft, the ISW said. Russia is preparing to launch nuclear weapon into space, U.S. fears. Russia wants to put a nuclear weapon into space, U.S. intelligence indicates in what was described as a serious national security threat, according to the Telegraph. It is noted that the weapons system could be used to target western satellites in space, potentially knocking out communications and military targeting systems. The U.S. president is understood to have been tracking the threat described as grave but not immediate for some weeks, according to White House sources. Republican Mike Turner, the head of the House Intelligence Committee, revealed the existence of the intelligence in a public statement calling on Biden to share it with the public. Sources told ABC News that the intelligence had to do with Moscow's seeking to put a nuclear weapon in space. The weapon would not be used against targets on the ground, the sources said, but described the intelligence as very concerning and very sensitive. It comes amid growing fears that Russia's war in Ukraine has escalated the potential for a clash between Moscow and NATO. White House officials said that they assessed the threat to be serious but believed there were ways to contain it without triggering mass panic. Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said, If Russia has, in fact, deployed nuclear weapons in orbit, that would be a deliberate and direct violation of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty by Moscow. The Outer Space Treaty is a cornerstone of space stability and this would be a grave setback for international arms control, he told the Telegraph. German Foreign Minister Annalena Behrbach was tracked down by a Russian drone. The head of the German Foreign Ministry, Annalena Behrbach, had to cancel a meeting in the Nikolayev region because of a Russian reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle. Build reporter Naja Aswad, who was present during this incident, writes about this. She says that she has been accompanying Behrbach on trips abroad for two years but has never experienced such a moment. Alarm! Drones! The minister's convoy is in danger, the journalist recalls. So Behrbach interrupted the conversation with the head of the desalination plant in the Nikolayev region because of a message from the embassy staff after which everyone immediately got into the cars. We sit down and the convoy immediately moves off as one. Having entered a normal road, the convoy accelerates to 80 to 100 kilometers an hour and then the journalists are informed. A Russian reconnaissance drone was spotted over the territory where we were driving. Usually such drones are followed by direct airstrikes, writes Aswad. Later, alarm programs went off on the delegation's smartphones. They were informed that a Russian drone was monitoring the convoy so they must continue to move forward. We move on and the fear of the invisible threat from the air travels with us. A few minutes later, everything is clear. The drone has turned off. She added.