Ukraine Claims it Shot Down Hi-Tech Russian Missile with US System
2023-05-09
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1Ukraine said Saturday that it shot down one of Russia's hypersonic missiles using an American-made defense system.
2Ukrainian military commander Mykola Oleshchuk said his forces downed the Russian missile over Kiev the night of May 4.
3He said they used the American Patriot missile defense system.
4He said a Russian aircraft had launched the hypersonic missile from Russian airspace into Ukraine.
5Ukraine sent soldiers to the U.S. earlier this year for training on the missile defense system.
6It is the first time Ukraine is known to have used the defense.
7Russia's military says the hypersonic missile can travel 2,000 kilometers and flies 10 times faster than the speed of sound, which makes it hard to shoot down.
8The combination of its speed and a heavy warhead makes the Kinzhal missile very powerful.
9It can destroy well-protected targets or mountain tunnels.
10It could also damage a large part of a city.
11The U.S. offered Ukraine access and training for the Patriot system in late 2022, just before a visit from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
12Ukraine received its first Patriot system in April.
13The systems came from the U.S., Germany and the Netherlands.
14It is not clear how many systems Ukraine has or where they are.
15Before last week's news, Russia said the U.S. Patriot system was too old to shoot down its fast missiles.
16Yurii Inhat is a spokesman for Ukraine's Air Force.
17"They were saying that the Patriot is an outdated American weapon, and Russian weapons are the best in the world" he said.
18"Well, there is confirmation that it effectively works against even a super-hypersonic missile."
19Inhat called it "a slap in the face for Russia."
20Ukraine's military first asked for a Patriot system in August 2021, well before Russia's February 2022 invasion.
21At that time, the U.S. said it could not send the system.
22Ukraine's top military leader is Valerii Zaluznyi.
23He thanked the U.S. for its aid in a message on the Telegram system over the weekend.
24I'm Dan Friedell.
1Ukraine said Saturday that it shot down one of Russia's hypersonic missiles using an American-made defense system. 2Ukrainian military commander Mykola Oleshchuk said his forces downed the Russian missile over Kiev the night of May 4. He said they used the American Patriot missile defense system. He said a Russian aircraft had launched the hypersonic missile from Russian airspace into Ukraine. 3Ukraine sent soldiers to the U.S. earlier this year for training on the missile defense system. It is the first time Ukraine is known to have used the defense. 4Russia's military says the hypersonic missile can travel 2,000 kilometers and flies 10 times faster than the speed of sound, which makes it hard to shoot down. 5The combination of its speed and a heavy warhead makes the Kinzhal missile very powerful. It can destroy well-protected targets or mountain tunnels. It could also damage a large part of a city. 6The U.S. offered Ukraine access and training for the Patriot system in late 2022, just before a visit from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 7Ukraine received its first Patriot system in April. The systems came from the U.S., Germany and the Netherlands. It is not clear how many systems Ukraine has or where they are. 8Before last week's news, Russia said the U.S. Patriot system was too old to shoot down its fast missiles. 9Yurii Inhat is a spokesman for Ukraine's Air Force. 10"They were saying that the Patriot is an outdated American weapon, and Russian weapons are the best in the world" he said. "Well, there is confirmation that it effectively works against even a super-hypersonic missile." 11Inhat called it "a slap in the face for Russia." 12Ukraine's military first asked for a Patriot system in August 2021, well before Russia's February 2022 invasion. At that time, the U.S. said it could not send the system. 13Ukraine's top military leader is Valerii Zaluznyi. He thanked the U.S. for its aid in a message on the Telegram system over the weekend. 14I'm Dan Friedell. 15Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 16________________________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18hypersonic -adj. able to travel faster than the speed of sound 19warhead -n. the part of a missile with the explosive device 20slap -v. to hit with an open hand 21________________________________________________________________ 22We want to hear from you. Do you think the Patriot system will slow down the Russian attacks? 23Here is how our comment system works: 24Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.