Russia announced that it had struck an underground ammunition depot in Ukraine with a multi-velocity Kinzhal missile. Since the announcement, one has wondered why that weapon would have been used and whether the attack took place at all.
Russian armed forces said on Saturday after using the hypersonic Kinzhal missile in the Ukrainian war. According to Russia, the target of the missile on Friday was a large underground ammunition depot in the Ivano-Frankivsk region of western Ukraine.
Ukraine has not confirmed an attack on any munitions depot in the region and there are no other independent findings of a missile attack.
Thus, there is no definite information as to whether the missile hit the intended target.
The Russian armed forces have released a video that they say was hit by a missile, but social media has denied the video was filmed from where it is alleged.
The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal must be launched from an aircraft a hypersonic missile, a version of the ground-fired Iskander M missile. It has a range of 2,000 kilometers and a 480-pound battle tip.
Hypersonic means moving at multiple speeds of sound. After launch, Kinzhal accelerates to four times the speed of sound (4,900 km / h) and allegedly up to ten times the speed of sound during a flight.
Kinzhal’s high speed, low trajectory, and maneuverability make it more difficult to fight than traditional missiles. According to Russia, it cannot be countered, for example, by the American Patriot air defense system, which Poland and Sweden, among others, have acquired for Russian missiles.
If Russia has used a hypersonic missile for the first time in a state of war – as it claims – the question arises as to why. The target would have been within reach of the Iskander or Kalibr missiles already used by Russia, and Ukraine’s air defense has not been able to do anything for them either.
In Ukraine, it is suspected that Russia’s traditional missiles are beginning to run out. The United States estimates that Russia has fired more than a thousand missiles at Ukraine during the three-week war – a significant portion of its stockpiles.
However, it is probably another matter. Hypersonic missiles are Vladimir Putin a favorite subject with which he has praised Russia’s leadership in the field of arms development – he introduced new weapons in his speech four years ago.
Russia has tried to put pressure on Kinzhal missiles west for some time.
In February, just before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia deployed at least one, possibly six, Miz-31K fighters armed with Kinzhale Kaliningrad region (switch to another service) To the southern part of the Baltic Sea. Within walking distance of European capitals.
Prior to that, the Kinzhal missile was seen under the MiG-31 in Syria, where Russia tested its new weapons for years. Possibly the function of the weapon was now wanted to be tested more, in harsher conditions of war.
Kinzhal’s alleged use in Ukraine may also be an attempt to improve the reputation of the armed forces in the eyes of the domestic public. Or it could be a message to NATO, which is bringing more advanced Patriot anti-aircraft systems to Poland and Slovakia.
British Broadcasting Corporation BBC interviewees (switching to another service) according to experts, the Kinzhal missile will not change the war situation in Ukraine. In particular, its destructive power is not greater than that of other missiles, and Russia does not even have much at its disposal.