Debris from Russian missiles indicates that some components manufactured by European and American companies were produced just two or three weeks before the strikes on Ukraine, according to Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat.
Speaking during a television broadcast, Ihnat said that examining missile fragments allows Ukrainian specialists to identify the types of weapons used in Russian attacks.
"As you can see, 39 missiles of different types were used against Ukraine. That is why we provide this breakdown, because the exact type can be determined from the debris. Of course, Russia does not have unlimited capabilities when it comes to using ballistic missiles. Very often, components are found that were manufactured literally two or three weeks ago in Europe. These include parts made by companies based in Europe or the United States, both in missiles and drones," he said.
Ihnat specified that the missiles used in the latest attack included Iskander-M, KN-23, S-400, Zircon and Oniks.
"These weapons attack along ballistic trajectories, meaning that only Patriot systems can be relied upon to intercept them. Four missiles were intercepted by these systems. We will not specify where or how, but frankly, that is not many," he said.
According to the spokesperson, the missiles targeted Kyiv and the surrounding region, with Ukraine's energy infrastructure among the main targets.
"Russia is indeed combining many different types of missiles, including S-400 and Zircon. Some missiles are more expensive, others cheaper. To carry out such a large-scale attack from different directions, Russia uses various types of missiles, which also have different flight characteristics," Ihnat explained.
He added that fragments recovered from several types of Russian missiles frequently contain recent manufacturing dates.
According to Ihnat, this also applies to Kalibr and Kh-101 cruise missiles.
