Russia’s strike on the Dnipro with a Soviet-era Kh-22 missile claimed dozens of civilian casualties. The Ukrainian Air Force says that Ukraine does not have the ability to repel this type of missile.
At least the Russian missile roulette paid off on Saturday 40 civilian casualties (you move to another service)the rescue service of Ukraine says.
In addition, at least 75 people have been injured. According to rescue services, 46 people may still be in the ruins of the apartment building that took the hit.
Ukrainian online media Kyiv Independent (switch to another service) reported that the Russian missile strike completely destroyed 72 apartments and damaged 230 apartments. According to news agency AP, about 1,700 people lived in the buildings.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, the destruction was caused by a Kh-22 cruise missile. The Air Force says that Ukraine does not have the ability to repel such missiles.
– Kh-22 travels at more than four times the speed of sound. That is why it is extremely difficult to shoot them down, and Ukraine does not have the anti-aircraft systems required for this, the teacher of defense systems Rhine Pella The Swedish National Defense University says.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia has launched at least 210 Kh-22 missiles into Ukraine during the war, none of which have been shot down.
The same missiles have also been used in several other attacks that claimed significant civilian casualties. For example, on June 27, two Kh-22 missiles hit a shopping mall in Kremenchuk, killing at least 20 people. A couple of days after this, Russia killed at least 21 civilians in Serhiivka with the same weapon.
Inaccuracy adds to the destruction
Pella does not believe that Russia’s goal was necessarily to attack the apartment building on Saturday. The target was probably infrastructure, as with other attacks on the same day. Russia itself has denied the apartment building attack.
– Kh-22 is a very old Soviet-era missile. It’s horribly inaccurate, says Pella.
Russia’s missile repertoire has started to shrink during the nearly year-long offensive war. Because of this, Russia relies on older equipment.
Originally designed as an anti-sea missile, the Kh-22 hits land targets with an accuracy of several hundred meters, according to Pella. However, a missile with a large warhead is very destructive when it hits.
– Russia doesn’t care if it hits civilian targets, says Pella.
– From Russia’s point of view, it also has an effect if Ukrainians have to live in fear.
Ukraine needs better air defense
Ukraine has long demanded more effective air defense systems from the West. In December, the United States promised to deliver the advanced Patriot anti-aircraft system to the country, but its implementation will take months, for example due to the training of the soldiers.
Currently, according to Pella, Ukraine’s air defense relies mainly on Soviet-era s300 anti-aircraft missiles. According to the expert, the acute problem is that Ukraine’s ammunition threatens to run low.
– Ukraine needs new Western anti-aircraft systems, but getting anti-aircraft missiles is the most important right now.
The Patriot anti-aircraft system is capable of countering, for example, Kh-22 cruise missiles, but Ukraine has only been promised one missile battery.
– One Patriot will not fundamentally change the situation yet. On the bright side, now that Ukrainian soldiers are being trained to use the Patriot, it would be easier for them to receive more missile batteries in the future.