By KYIV. May 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine has strengthened its ability to repel enemy missiles with the arrival of Western air defense systems and now their effectiveness is approaching 90%, and around Kyiv – up to 100%, according to ABC NEWS on Thursday, citing estimates from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
For comparison, the newspaper writes, in the first months of the war, Ukraine intercepted about 50% of flying Russian missiles. The CSIS report says that the actual figure could have been much lower.
“With the arrival of new Western-made air defense systems in October and November, as well as the growing skill of the Ukrainian batteries, Ukraine reported intercepting some 80% of incoming Russian cruise missiles by December. Today… the figure is closer to 90%, and… the defense systems around Kyiv have taken down 100% of missiles shot at the city since April 28,” the report says.
It is also emphasized that Ukrainian troops, with the help of Western weapons, are building air defense at several levels.
“Ukraine has gradually added new systems from Western allies, including IRIS-T batteries from Germany in October and the American and Norwegian-built NASAMS in November… It has also received European-built SAMP/T systems, and American-built HAWK missiles, and last month added two U.S.-built Patriot batteries. The air-defense teams are set up with overlapping range rings, starting from short, almost point-blank defenses using shoulder-launched missiles and anti-air cannons to greater distances,” the report says.
