Ukraine Destroys Putin’s Prized $10M Air Defense System

Ukraine has destroyed its 1,000th Russian anti-aircraft missile system in the war, according to Kyiv, which has released unsubstantiated footage of the strike.

Ukraine’s Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko posted a clip on his Telegram channel next to a message that described how a drone unit in the National Guard’s 27th Pechersk Brigade hit the BUK-M1 system on “one of the hottest areas of the front,” without specifying a location or a date. Newsweek has emailed the Russian Defense Ministry for comment.

Ukraine has ramped up domestic drone production and uses the devices on the battlefield, as well as for strikes inside Russian territory, often targeting energy infrastructure and military sites, with the aim of choking its war effort.

The BUK-M1 system was located during reconnaissance in a hotspot on the front line and “with an accurate blow, the enemy equipment was completely destroyed,” said the post, according to a translation. It added that it was worth “10 million U.S. dollars” and that “every day we make the enemy weaker” through such strikes.

The clip shows aerial footage of the strike from several angles and the aftermath of an explosion. Newsweek has as yet been unable to verify the footage or the Ukrainian claims.

Ukraine’s General Staff said Saturday that in the war so far, Russia had lost 999 air defense systems. After the update, the latest strike would take Kyiv’s tally to four figures, although these numbers have not been independently confirmed.

The BUK-M1 is a self-propelled, medium-range surface-to-air missile system that is used to target tactical and strategic aircraft, cruise missiles, helicopters and other aerodynamic targets.

With a NATO reporting name of SA-11 Gadfly, the system has been continually upgraded. The Soviet-designed systems have been used by both sides although, last year, Kyiv said they had converted them to shoot American missiles.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv was testing four types of missiles, telling Ukrainian media that “progress has been made,” as well on drones and electronic warfare systems.

Russia has continued its missiles and drone barrage on civilian targets in Ukraine, frequently using Iranian Shahed drones, but it is reported that Moscow is looking to another ally for help.

The EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said there was convincing evidence of Beijing providing lethal aid regarding attack drone production, according to the German media outlet Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ).

European intelligence sources had told Reuters in September that Moscow had secretly established a development and production program in China for attack drones.

An unnamed senior EU official told Politico on Friday that intelligence pointed to a factory inside China that is producing drones, which are shipped to Russia. The EU has yet to determine whether Beijing is aware of the firm’s drone production, according to Politico, and China’s foreign ministry has previously denied knowledge of the project.