Russia claims hitting US-made Patriot air defense system in Ukrainian capital

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) – Russia on Tuesday claimed that a Kinzhal hypersonic missile hit a US-made Patriot air defense system in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv during airstrikes late Monday.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed in a statement that it made “concentrated strikes” with long-range air and sea-based weapons at deployment points of the Ukrainian armed forces.

The statement said Russia hit storage facilities containing Western-delivered ammunition, weapons and equipment, claiming that all targets were hit.

It added that Russian air defense systems intercepted seven Storm Shadow missiles, three HARM missiles, and seven HIMARS multiple rocket launchers during the day.

Earlier, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov claimed on Twitter that six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles were shot down over Kyiv.

“Thank you to our Air Force service members and our partner states, who invested in securing the skies over Ukraine and all of Europe,” Reznikov said, adding that Russian weapons “can and should be countered by Western ones.”

Separately, Ukraine’s Strategic Communications Directorate claimed that nine Kalibr missiles and three ballistic missiles were shot down.

It added that Russia used Shahed drones during the attacks, and also conducted aerial reconnaissance with three operational-tactical drones.