Russia rejects Kiev's claim of downing hypersonic missiles

Russian defense minister has dismissed Ukraine’s claim of shooting down six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, saying Russia had not fired such number of missiles that were in fact used to crush a US-supplied Patriot air system.

“Russia has not launched as many Kinzhals as [Kiev] says it has shot down,” Sergei Shoigu insisted on Tuesday in an interview with the local Ria Novosti news agency, pointing out that the number of Ukrainian missile intercepted by Russia is generally “three times greater than the number we launch.”

"And they get the type of missiles wrong all the time. That's why they don't hit them," the Russian defense chief added, ridiculing the claim made by Ukraine’s top military commander that Kiev forces had shot down an entire volley of multiple Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night.

Shoigu went on to emphasize that one of the Kinzhal missiles had indeed destroyed a Patriot air defense system that was eventually delivered to Kiev after repeated pleas, saying, “A high-precision strike by the hypersonic Kinzhal missile hit a US-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile system in the city of Kiev.”

US officials have also confirmed that Russian missiles had struck a Patriot system deployed in Ukraine, with one official further adding that the US was in the process of transferring the missile system out of Kiev for a complete overhaul of the damaged system in another, unspecified location.

The development came after a number of top Ukrainian officials claimed an incredible success of the country’s military forces against Russia in an apparent publicity campaign to highlight the effectiveness of West-supplied weaponry in confronting Moscow.  

Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Valeriy Zaluzhnyi claimed earlier on Tuesday that his troops had intercepted six Kinzhal missiles launched from Russian aircraft.

“Another incredible success for the Ukrainian air force,” added Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov in published remarks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyalso claimed before the Council of Europe via video-conference that “100 percent” of Russian missiles fired at Ukrainian territory overnight Monday to Tuesday had been intercepted.

Ukraine had earlier claimed that it had also shot down a Russian missile for the first time in early May, using the US-made Patriot anti-aircraft system delivered to Kiev back in April.

The Kinzhal (Dagger) missile is one of the weapons described as “invincible” by Russian President Vladimir Putin, as their speed allows them to defy most air defense systems.

The missile is capable of carrying conventional or nuclear warheads up to 2,000 kilometers. It was used for the first time by Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

The West has supplied Ukraine with tens of billions of dollars worth of various weaponry since the onset of the Russian military campaign in February 2022 as a security measure against persisting eastern advance of the US-led NATO military alliance and the protection of Russian-speaking population in eastern Ukraine from abusive treatment by Kiev forces.

Weapons supplied to Ukraine by the West include rocket systems, drones, armored vehicles, tanks, and communication systems.

Russian officials have repeatedly warned against flooding Ukraine with weapons, insisting the massive shipments of armaments to Kiev will only prolong the bloody conflict.

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