Ukraine sets record for shooting down 100% of Russian hypersonic missiles: What happened?

Russian MiG-31K fighter carrying Kinzhal hypersonic missile (Illustration: Telegram).

According to the Kyiv Post , five people were killed in a major Russian airstrike on Ukraine on January 2. If the Kinzhal hypersonic missile and other missiles "slipped through the net", it would be another major disaster.

Using the US-made Patriot air defense system, Ukraine set a record by shooting down all 10 out of 10 Russian Kinzhal Kh-47M2 hypersonic missiles fired at Ukrainian cities, Chief of the General Staff of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny said on social media.

Along with most of Kiev, Kyiv Post reporters woke up early on January 2 to the sound of explosions and shaking walls from one of the largest Russian air strikes since the conflict began in February 2022.

"So far, nearly a hundred missiles of various types have been launched, and the enemy planned their flight paths to cause as much damage as possible. This was a completely premeditated attack," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Taras Chmut, a marine and head of Come Back Alive — one of Ukraine's largest charities — noted that no country had ever repelled such an attack.

"Thank you to the familiar air defense personnel - today they successfully repelled the world's largest combined missile attack with hypersonic weapons," Chmut posted on social media.

The Patriot was designed before the advent of hypersonic missiles like the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal, but its deployment in Ukraine has demonstrated that the US-made air defense system is effective at intercepting them.

On the other hand, Russia did not comment on the information that Ukraine shot down all 10/10 Kinzhal missiles announced by Kiev, but the Russian Ministry of Defense reported the results of the raid on January 2 as follows: "The armed forces of the Russian Federation conducted a group attack with high-precision long-range weapons and drones on enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex."

The targets were missile and drone production and repair facilities for aircraft, weapons and military hardware in Kiev and its suburbs, as well as warehouses storing missiles, ammunition and aviation weapons supplied to Ukraine by Western countries, the ministry said.

The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that the purpose of the attack was achieved. All targets were hit.

Patriot air defense missile system made in the US (Photo: US Army).

President Zelensky said in a video address on January 2 that Russia has used nearly 300 missiles and more than 200 drones against Ukraine since December 29, 2023.

That day alone, according to AP , Russia used 122 missiles and dozens of drones in an 18-hour bombardment that cost at least $1.273 billion. According to Forbes , the January 2 attack could cost Russia about $620 million.

Shortly after the missile attack, in a phone call with the Ukrainian President, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that he would continue to steadfastly support Ukraine and its Western allies, helping Ukraine supplement its air defense system.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote on social media: "With every missile, Putin shows that he wants to destroy Ukraine. Patriots & IRIS-T provided by us save lives every day."

Meanwhile, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics on January 2 called for additional air defense systems for Ukraine, Kyiv Independent reported.

“The Ukrainians have done a phenomenal job with the air defenses the West has provided, but they need more… Air defense systems must come to Ukraine now,” Nausea wrote on social media.

The Latvian president also wrote: "Ukraine's air defense is working well, however, Ukraine must receive more help... The New Year celebrations are over and the West must get serious and act now."

Most recently, on January 3, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski called on allies to provide long-range missiles to Ukraine to help Kiev target "launch sites and command centers" amid a new wave of Russian attacks.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/ukraine-lap-ky-luc-ha-100-ten-lua-sieu-thanh-cua-nga-chuyen-gi-da-xay-ra-20240103121154614.htm