Russia Ukraine War Latest Updates | Why Can’t Ukraine’s Defence Systems Intercept Russian Missiles?

Russia pounded the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and the surrounding region with scores of missiles and drones in a nighttime aerial attack that lasted for hours and killed at least 16 people, officials said Thursday. Moscow’s forces have in recent months intensified their ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, exploiting Ukraine’s chronic shortage of U.S.-made Patriot air defense interceptors, the sole weapon in its arsenal able to shoot down the missiles. Such large-scale Russian missile strikes have become a regular occurrence this summer. Just over two weeks ago, a Russian attack on Kyiv and its surrounding region killed 17 people, and nine were killed in the city two days before that. The United Nations said last week that Kyiv was also one of the hardest hit cities in Ukraine in July, with at least 54 civilians killed and 202 injured. At the same time, Ukraine has shifted the war onto Russian soil through long-range drone strikes on oil facilities that have caused fuel shortages across the country. It has also unsettled the Russian public by striking warehouses of Wildberries, the country’s biggest online retailer. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pleaded for countries to send more Patriot interceptors for defense, but international stockpiles are low amid the Iran war and Kyiv’s more than four-year fight against Russia’s all-out invasion. Russia’s overnight barrage also included cruise missiles and jet-powered drones that further strain air defenses, the Ukrainian air force said. Explosions boomed across Kyiv in the dark, but the air force said hits were recorded at 28 locations across the country.