Kyiv [Ukraine], May 17 : Ukraine on Tuesday said that it shot down six Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles as Russia launched an "exceptional" aerial assault against the Ukrainian capital - Kyiv, reported CNN.
Ukraine's air defence intercepted six hypersonic Kinzhal missiles fired by Russia early Tuesday, according to Ukrainian officials.
The attack was one of the largest since March and appeared to demonstrate Ukraine's growing capability to defend against Russia's arsenal of aerial weapons, reported The New York Times (NYT).
Ukrainian Armed Forces chief Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi said the attack, which started at about 3:30 a.m. local time, was launched from the north, south, and east.
"Six Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles were fired from six MiG-31K aircraft, nine Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea, and three land-based missiles (S-400, Iskander-M)," Zaluzhnyi said on Twitter, adding that Moscow also launched attack drones, all of which were destroyed.
The six Kinzhals ballistic missiles that travel up to 10 times the speed of sound were among a volley of 18 missiles Russia fired at Ukraine overnight, lighting up Kyiv with flashes and raining debris after blasting from the sky.
If confirmed, the strikes would be further evidence of Ukraine's ability to shoot down one of the most sophisticated conventional weapons in Moscow's arsenal, reported NYT.
Meanwhile, in one of the largest aerial assaults since early March, Russia also launched nine Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea, three short-range ballistic missiles from land and a number of drones, according to the commander in chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces. All of the drones and missiles were shot down, the military said.
Earlier this month, Ukraine claimed to have shot down a single Kinzhal missile over Kyiv for the first time using a newly deployed US Patriot air defence system, reported CBC.
The US military confirmed that account but did not say whether the Russian missile was flying at a hypersonic speed at the time of the intercept.
The US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) says the Kinzhal rapidly accelerates to Mach 4 (4,900 km/h) after launch and may reach speeds of up to Mach 10 or 10 times the speed of sound. Hypersonic weapons travel at least five times the speed of sound.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been promised billions of dollars in new military aid during a whirlwind tour of European allies, reflecting a striking shift in the political landscape.
Meanwhile, the fight for the eastern city of Bakhmut is now the war's single longest and bloodiest battle. Although the Ukrainians are making small gains, Russia still controls about 90 per cent of the largely ruined city.
The Ukrainian military says that it has been moving forward despite fierce resistance from Russian soldiers to the north and south of Bakhmut, putting greater pressure on Moscow's forces to devote resources to the battle as they brace for a wider Ukrainian counteroffensive.
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