Russian dictator Vladimir Putin surrounded by officials at Almaz-Antey, January 18 (Photo:Sputnik/Ilya Pitalyov/Pool via REUTERS)
Russia is trying to restore its stockpile of missiles after the attacks on Ukraine, and is even resorting to threatening company heads to achieve it, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said in an interview with NV on Jan. 24.
When asked about how many missiles are left in Russia, she noted that, on the one hand, the Russian missile stocks are running out, but on the other hand, Russia is still producing missiles.
“And they produce them themselves,” Malyar said, noting that they Russians were still able to produce some missiles despite Western sanctions that have restricted the Kremlin’s access to some technologies, such as Western-designed computer chips.
“Now the Russians have increased capacity by Stalinist methods, directly through physical threats to the heads of enterprises, and they have plans to reach a normal level of production after a certain time to ensure the conduct of this war,” Malyar said.
She said that while Russian missile resources are decreasing, they are not depleted to zero, and in some cases they can replenish them.
The last time Russia launched a massive missile strike on Ukraine was on Jan. 14. During that attack, a Russian Kh-22 missile struck an apartment complex in the city of Dnipro, killing 46 people and injuring 80.
According to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, this missile attack also seriously damaged nine thermal power plant units, three main substations, and one power line.
The Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate spokesman Vadym Skybytskyi said on Jan. 23 that Russia has about 550 high-precision missiles left, or about 20% of the number it had before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said on Jan. 16 that Russia may still have in storage many more Kh-22 cruise missiles like the one used in the Jan. 14 attack on Dnipro.
The official added Kh-22 has can accelerate to about 4,000 km/h, and before hitting the target, it descends sharply – almost like a ballistic missile.
However, the missile, which was designed in the 1960s, is highly inaccurate: the missile’s circular error probability sits at around 600 meters, Ihnat said
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