War Russia – Ukraine | Kinzhal: How Russia Uses Hypersonic Missiles in Ukraine and Intercept | Vladimir Putin | Volodymyr Zelensky the world

Last Thursday, Russia conducted one of its largest airstrikes against Ukraine Over several months. More than 80 missiles were launched and the main target was energy infrastructure.

As a result of the attacks, nearly half a million people were left without electricity KharkivSecond largest city Ukraine.

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But Thursday’s attacks differed from previous ones in that they were used in larger numbers Hypersonic missiles Sophisticated, incl KinchalThe most advanced weapons in the Russian arsenal.

Ministry of Defence Russia Confirmed to use Kinsel missiles. After this Ukraine will inform that Six of them were hypersonic missiles launched against its territory.

“Unexpectedly, A Kinzel type missile struck an infrastructure object”, said Serhi Popko, head of the Kyiv Regional Military Authority.

“They send a clear signal to everyone UkraineAnd for some of our refugees outside of Ukraine, life has not returned to normal, despite much calmer conditions in recent weeks.Alexander Rodnyansky, economic adviser to the Ukrainian president, told CNN Volodymyr Zelensky.

But experts told CNN this These types of airstrikes are not going to win Russia the war.

“There is a long history of countries trying to win wars through strategic bombing to break the will or resilience of an enemy state.”Justin Bronk, a senior fellow in airpower and technology at the London-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), told CNN. “He has an incredibly poor record of success.”

But what about missiles? Kinchal?

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He Kinchal (dagger in Russian) is one of the most recent and advanced Russian weapons. According to the Russian military, this hypersonic missile, once launched into the air, has a range of 2,000 kilometers (about 1,250 miles) and flies at 10 times the speed of sound (Mach 10), making it difficult to intercept.

“The combination of hypersonic speed and heavy warships allows Kinchal Destroy heavily fortified targets such as underground bunkers or tunnels.” AP reports.

Russia has used Kinchal From the first days of the invasion in February 2022 to attack targets in Ukraine, but used them sparingly and against priority targets, apparently reflecting the limited number of these missiles.

He Kinchal It can carry nuclear warheads in addition to conventional payloads.

He Kinchal It is carried by MiG-31 fighter jets, some of which are based in Belarus. Russia uses its allied territory as a staging ground for invasion and keeps its forces and weapons there.

Russian news agency TASS reported in 2018 Kinzhal will cross 3,000 kilometers If launched from a Tupolev Tu-22M bomber.

This is Hypersonic missile It is very difficult to intercept due to its maneuverability. It measures 8 meters and changes its path in the air According to the Infobae portal, opt out if necessary.

In 2018, when it was presented, Russian President Vladimir Putin said: Kinchal It can reach anywhere in the world and bypass the anti-missile shield developed by the US.

The Kinzhal is a modified version of the Russian Iskander missile.It was also used several times in Ukraine.

What about Ukraine’s anti-aircraft defenses?

After Thursday’s blasts, an adviser to President Zelensky admitted that Ukraine’s air defense systems could not deal with the missiles. Kinchal.

“They are using hypersonic missiles. They are using new types of weapons and seeing how our air defense systems can deal with them., Alexander Rodnyansky told CNN. “They didn’t protect enough,” he said.

In Thursday’s bombardment, Russia included six older Kh-22 missiles, which are launched by Tu-22M heavy bombers and fly three times the speed of sound, the Ukrainian military said.

As with previous attacks, Russia He also shot Modern Kh-101 cruise missile strategic bombing and Caliber cruise missiles, are launched by warships. Several of the missiles were intercepted by Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses, AP reported.

Ukrainian officials and experts believe Russia is trying to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses in a massive attack using multiple types of missiles and drones.

Russia’s Defense Ministry described Thursday’s bombing as a “revenge strike” that Moscow described as a cross-border attack by Ukrainian saboteurs in the country’s western Bryansk region.