Air Defense Weapons, Systems Ukraine Has to Stop Russian Strikes

Ukraine faced a second consecutive day of strikes on Tuesday in what Russian President Vladimir Putin said is retaliation for an explosion at the Kerch Bridge that connects Russia to the occupied Crimean peninsula.

Putin blamed Ukraine for the explosion at the bridge, which is also a key supply route for Russian troops, and vowed that he would respond to what he alleged was an act of “terrorism.” The State Emergency Service of Ukraine said in a Tuesday morning update that the ensuing wave of strikes hit critical and civilian infrastructure in 12 Ukrainian regions and the capital of Kyiv, leaving 301 settlements in the Kyiv, Lviv, Sumy, Ternopil and Khmelnytsky regions without power.

Preliminary figures indicated that at least 19 people were killed and another 105 were injured in the attacks, according to the service.

Though Russian missile strikes are not a new development in the ongoing war, the recent onslaught of attacks has spurred several Western nations to promise the delivery of new air defense systems and weapons that Ukraine can use to protect itself.

People look at their destroyed cars that stand amid damage caused by a missile strike in a residential area near Tower 101 not far from Kyiv’s main train station on October 11, 2022, in Kyiv, Ukraine. Ukraine faced a second consecutive day of strikes on Tuesday in what Russian President Vladimir Putin said is retaliation for an explosion at the Kerch Bridge that connects Russia to the occupied Crimean peninsula. Ed Ram/Getty Images

Germany announced Monday that it would provide the first of four new IRIS-T air defense systems to Ukraine within days. The IRIS-T systems are land-based, use-modified, short-range missiles and have an operating range of up to 40 kilometers and target detection range of 250 kilometers.

“The renewed missile fire on Kyiv and the many other cities show how important it is to supply Ukraine with air defen[s]e systems quickly,” German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said in a statement. “Russia’s attacks with missiles and drones terrorize the civilian population in particular. That is why we are now providing support especially with air defen[s]e weapons.”

In a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden condemned the Russian missile strikes and “pledged to continue providing Ukraine with the support needed to defend itself, including advanced air defense systems,” according to a White House readout.

But even before the new deliveries, some Western countries had already provided or committed other air defense systems and weapons to Ukraine to counter further Russian missile strikes.

The U.S. has already sent more than 1,400 Stinger anti-air systems to Ukraine, as well as air surveillance and multi-mission radars, according to an unnamed senior administration official cited in a CNN report on Monday. According to manufacturer Raytheon Missiles and Defense, Stinger missiles are lightweight and self-contained air defense systems that “can be rapidly deployed by ground troops” against air targets.

In April, the U.S. Defense Department touted Slovakia’s decision to provide an S-300 air defense system to Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said that the Defense Department was continuing to consult with Slovakia’s government about “more permanent air defense solutions.”

Zelensky announced in August that Ukraine had received National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) from the U.S. NASAMS are medium-range air defense systems that can identify and destroy aircraft, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

A Defense Department fact sheet on U.S. security assistance to Ukraine shows that eight NASAMS overall have been committed to the war-torn country.

Newsweek reached out to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry for comment.