American-made MIM-104 Patriot long-range air defense systems supplied to Ukraine failed even to protect themselves, Russian Air and Missile Defense Forces Commander Lieutenant General Andrey Semyonov said in an article published by the TASS news agency on July 5.
Semyonov, who is also deputy commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces, said in his article that in the course of the special military operation, Russian air defense systems confirmed their potential to repel strikes by all types of enemy air attack capabilities.
“That contrasts with the much-vaunted Patriot air defense systems, which were supplied to Ukraine by NATO countries and, as the experience of the special military operation showed, proved unable not only to protect the designated sites, but also to counter modern Russian means of destruction, that is, to protect themselves,” the Russian general wrote.
Last year, Ukraine received two Patriot systems and two launchers from Germany and another system from the United States with two additional launchers donated by the Netherlands.
The systems supplied to Kiev were reportedly a mix of PAC-3 hit-to-kill active missiles to intercept ballistic missiles, with a range of 30-60 kilometers only, and PAC-2 blast fragmentation warhead semi-active missiles to counter aircraft threats with a range of up to 160 kilometers.
A Patriot system costs around $1,1 billion. A single PAC-3 missile costs some $7 million and a PAC-2 missile could cost up to $4 million, depending on the version.
The Russian military has already destroyed most of Ukraine’s Patriot systems, mainly using Iskander-M ground-launched tactical ballistic missiles and Kh-47M2 Kinzhal air-launched hypersonic ballistic missiles.
On the backdrop of these losses, the Kiev regime begged its allies for more systems. In response, the U.S., Germany and Romania each promised to supply a system to Ukraine. Other countries like the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway and Spain said that they would provide additional missiles.
In addition, the U.S., Israel and Ukraine are reportedly in talks to provide Kiev forces with up to eight Patriot systems currently owned and used by the Israeli military.
The fate of these costly air defense systems will likely be very similar to the ones supplied to Ukraine by its backers last year.
While the West’s latest air defense systems performed quite poorly in Ukraine, Russian air defenses proved their worth there.
In his article, Lt. Gen. Semyonov revealed that Russian air defense forces destroyed a total of more than 42,000 aerial targets since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine. This includes more than 550 jets, more than 180 helicopters and more than 27,000 drones. .
More than 5,500 servicemen of the air defense forces were awarded government decorations for their fortitude and valiance and seven of them were awarded the high title of Hero of the Russian Federation, the general said.
He added that ten air defense units and formations have been awarded the honorary title of Guards for massive heroism and bravery, fortitude and valiance that they displayed in combat operations to “defend the Fatherland and the interests of the country,”