Putin: Russia air defense systems 'cracking like nuts' western weapons
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Russian President Vladimir Putin stresses that new weapons supplied by the United States to Ukraine with dozens of units have been already destroyed.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin underlined on Saturday during an interview for the Russian Channel One broadcaster that the Russian air defense systems are "cracking like nuts" new weapons supplied by the United States to Ukraine with dozens of units already destroyed.
Commenting on the new US weapons deliveries to Kiev, which include the long-range HIMARS systems, Putin said that "our air defense systems are cracking like nuts [American weapons], dozens of them have been destroyed."
Putin's statements come as the US Under-Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl told a press briefing on Wednesday that the Pentagon has decided to provide High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) to Ukraine due to the nature of the conflict changing to an "artillery duel".
US President Joe Biden had announced that his country would provide Ukraine with more advanced rocket systems and munitions, which include HIMARS rocket systems.
Read more: Experts warn arms for Ukraine could have disastrous consequences
It is noteworthy that Biden had previously claimed that Washington would not provide Kiev with weapons capable of targeting Russian territory.
But a senior administration official told reporters that the US would send M142 HIMARS, which have a range of approximately 77 km. The official added that the missiles are part of a weapons package for Ukraine valued at $700 million.
According to a senior Biden administration official, the US has sent more than $5 billion in military supplies to Ukraine since the President took office in 2021.
US Department of State Spokesperson Ned Price had also revealed that his country was still considering a range of weapon systems for Ukraine that the latter could use against the Russian forces.
Moscow had sent a formal diplomatic note to the United States warning that Washington and Brussels' arms shipments were adding fuel to the fire of the war in Ukraine, stressing that this matter could bring upon "unpredictable consequences".
