Ukraine destroys Putin’s Kinzhal fairy tale

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They are “invulnerable”, a “miracle weapon” and the military pride of Russian President Vladimir Putin (70): the Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. At least that’s what Russia claims. And indeed: due to their high speed and maneuverability, many air defense systems have to contend with the missiles.

Since the war in Ukraine, a kind of myth has developed around the missiles, which are believed to be extremely difficult to detect. According to Russian information, the kinschal – in English “dagger” – exceeds the speed of sound many times, is capable of carrying nuclear weapons and can “easily” hit targets up to 2000 kilometers away.

However, in recent weeks, Ukraine has proven time and time again that they are not as indestructible as Russia likes to claim. The Ukrainian air defense system says it succeeded in intercepting several of this type of missiles last week and Tuesday night. Ukrainian Air Force General Mykola Oleschchuk (50) saw it as a “historic event”.

Vulnerability is ‘surprising’ and ’embarrassing’

A bitter blow to Russia. At least that is what the British Ministry of Defense writes on Wednesday Twitter. “The apparent vulnerability of the Kinzhal is likely to surprise and embarrass Russia.”

But how did Ukraine manage to shoot down this “silver bullet” from the Russians? The answer: the American air defense system Patriot, which has been used by Ukraine since April. This is the view of Markus Schiller, a specialist in long-range missiles at the Bundeswehr University in Munich, as he told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. “Ukraine’s Patriot systems should be able to launch these missiles.”

The Patriot system is the most effective that Ukraine has received to date – and is even considered the best in the world. It can track up to 50 targets and fight five objects at once. A thorn in the side of the Russian army: where Ukraine previously could not protect itself against the powerful Kinzhal missiles, the Russians must now tremble.

The Russian army is short of Kinzhal missiles

Because: According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russia only had about 50 kinshaws. Russia fired six of these missiles at Ukraine in March, causing widespread destruction. This week there were six again, but this time with less disastrous consequences for Ukraine thanks to the Patriot system.

So Kinshah stocks are getting scarce. Little wonder, then, that Russia is trying to turn the story around the incident and divert attention from its own vulnerability: After Ukraine reported that it had deflected all Russian missiles, the Russian military claimed to have destroyed a western Patriot air defense system with a kinshah . The information could not be independently verified, Ukraine denies this.

Source: Blick