Western air defences saved many Ukrainians from the Kremlin’s missiles but with 18 dead and support from its allies wavering, Kyiv is in no mood to celebrate
President Putin once boasted that Russia’s hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, which were among the 158 fired at targets across Ukraine on Friday, were “indestructible”.
Russia launched a wave of hypersonic, ballistic and cruise missiles as well as kamikaze drones at cities including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro and Odesa.
The ease with which Ukraine was able to swat them away is testament to the power of its western air defences.
