The Russian Defense Ministry said this Saturday (4) that its air defense shot down four long-range missiles produced in the United States over the Crimean peninsula.
This weaponry would be known as Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), which Washington sent to Ukraine in recent weeks.
The ministry later said that Russian aircraft and air defense systems shot down a total of 15 ATACMS last week.
On Tuesday (30), Russian authorities noted that Ukraine attacked Crimea with the ATACMS, in an attempt to get past the air defenses on the peninsula, but that six devices were shot down.
An American official highlighted last month that the United States had secretly sent long-range missiles to Ukraine in recent weeks.
The ATACMS missiles, with a range of up to 300 km, were used for the first time in the early hours of April 17, launched against a Russian airfield in Crimea, around 165 km from the Ukrainian front lines, the source highlighted.
The Pentagon initially opposed the deployment of long-range missiles in Ukraine, concerned that removing the weaponry from the American arsenal could undermine U.S. military readiness.
There were also concerns that Ukraine would use them to attack targets inside Russia, something that could lead to an escalation of the war towards a direct confrontation between Russia and the United States.
Furthermore, this Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that last week its forces destroyed a military convoy carrying equipment and weapons produced in the West and supplied to Ukraine by NATO, the Western military alliance.
The scale of the damage, exact date and location were not disclosed.
Reuters was unable to confirm battlefield reports from either side.
On Thursday (2), British Foreign Secretary David Cameron promised £3 billion of annual military aid to Ukraine “for as long as necessary”, adding that London had no objections to the use of its weapons inside Russia, generating a strong rebuke from Moscow.
Source: CNN Brasil
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