RUSSIA CLAIMS TO STRIKE TWO UKRAINIAN PATRIOT SYSTEMS
Russia said on Sunday it struck two Patriot air defence launch systems, but Ukraine said Moscow had hit decoy targets designed to squander expensive enemy missiles.
Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement the attack took place in the area of the Black Sea port of Yuzhne, adding that a radar station was also destroyed. It said Iskander-m ballistic missiles had been used.
Commenting on videos of the attack circulating on social media, Ukraine’s air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said in a post on Telegram on Saturday evening, that Russia had hit Ukrainian decoy Patriot systems.
Ukraine has previously exhibited cheap decoys built to look like multi-million dollar western air defence and missile systems for which Moscow is hunting in Ukraine.
The Patriot system, which has proved extremely effective in this war and of which Ukraine has very few, is at the top of Moscow’s target list.
Oleshchuk added that Russia had also hit decoy planes in a missile attack on a Ukrainian military airfield on Wednesday.
“Thank you to all who help with quality decoy planes and air defence systems. The enemy now has fewer Iskanders, but we will bring up more decoys.”
A video released on Telegram by the Russian ministry showed daylight explosions on uninhabited land near a coastline, after zooming in to identify objects.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones hit a munitions depot inside Russia overnight and there was a “high chance” of explosions at
Russian military-industrial sites in the near future, a security source said on Sunday. The source, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the 9,000 sq. metre munitions storage facility was in the Russian region of Voronezh, which borders a chunk of northeastern Ukraine occupied by Russia since 2022. Russia stored surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, tank and artillery shells, and bullets at the depot, according to the source.
According to the source, the depot was near the village of Sergeyevka, which is about 85 miles from the nearest Kyivcontrolled territory.