WASHINGTON: Russia’s surge in missile strikes in Ukraine is partly designed to exhaust Kyiv’s supplies of air defenses and finally achieve dominance of the skies above the country, a senior Pentagon official said on Saturday.
Russia has been hammering cities across Ukraine with missile strikes over the past week, in one of the heaviest waves of missile attacks since Moscow began its invasion nearly nine months ago.
Ukraine says the strikes have crippled almost half of Ukraine’s energy system, creating a potential humanitarian disaster as winter sets in.
Colin Kahl, the Pentagon’s top policy adviser, cautioned that Moscow also hoped to deplete Ukrainian air defenses that have so far prevented the Russian military from establishing dominance of the skies above Ukraine.
“They’re really trying to overwhelm and exhaust Ukrainian air defense systems,” Kahl told reporters during a trip to the Middle East.
“We know what the Russian theory of victory is, and we’re committed to making sure that’s not going to work by making sure that the Ukrainians get what they need to keep their air defenses viable.”
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Western military experts widely expected the Russian military to try to immediately destroy Ukraine’s air force and air defenses. That is a core element of modern military strategy, allowing better support for advancing ground forces.
Instead, Ukrainian troops with surface-to-air rockets and other air defenses were able to threaten Russian aircraft and the skies above Ukraine remain contested to this day.
That critical, early failure has been a core element of Russia’s troubles in Ukraine as it presses its failing invasion, at tremendous cost in lives and military equipment.
“I think one of the things that probably surprised the Russians the most is how resilient Ukraine’s air defenses have been since the beginning of this conflict,” Kahl said.
“In large part, that’s because of the ingenuity and cleverness of the Ukrainians themselves in keeping their air defense systems viable. But it’s also because the United States and other allies and partners have provided a tremendous amount of support,” he said.
Last week, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin focused on air defense supplies for Ukraine at a virtual meeting he hosted from the Pentagon. Ukraine’s allies have been providing everything from legacy Soviet-era systems to more modern, Western ones.
For the United States, this includes newly US-provided NASAMS air defense systems that the Pentagon says so far have had a 100 percent success rate in Ukraine intercepting Russian missiles.
“We’ve been transitioning the Ukrainians toward the NATO standard equipment across the board, but not the least of which includes air defense systems like the NASAM,” Kahl said.
The United States has provided more than 1,400 Stinger anti-aircraft systems along with counter-artillery and air surveillance radars to Ukraine.
Russia trying to exhaust Ukraine’s air defenses, Pentagon official says
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Russia trying to exhaust Ukraine’s air defenses, Pentagon official says
- Russia has been hammering cities across Ukraine with missile strikes over the past week
- Colin Kahl, the Pentagon's top policy advisor, cautioned that Moscow also hoped to deplete Ukrainian air defenses
Kremlin welcomes US sanctions waiver says US and Russia share interest in stable energy markets
DUBAI: Russia sees a U.S. sanctions waiver on its oil as an attempt by Washington to stabilise global energy markets, and the two countries have a shared interest in this, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.
"We see actions by the United States aimed at trying to stabilise energy markets. In this respect, our interests coincide," he said.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a temporary authorisation allowing countries around the world to purchase Russian oil currently stranded at sea on Thursday extending a measure that had previously been granted only to Indian refiners.
Bessent stressed in a post on X that the authorisation would not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government.
“This narrowly tailored, short-term measure applies only to oil already in transit and will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government, which derives the majority of its energy revenue from taxes assessed at the point of extraction,” Bessent said on a post on X.
However, the measure received mix reviews in European capitals, with many fearing it could help replenish Russia's assualt on Ukraine.
"I am concerned that we are further filling Putin's war chest," German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said in Berlin on Friday.
Reiche said that she saw both sides to the United States' decision to issue a 30-day waiver for the purchase of Russian oil products, understanding the increasing ecnomic and political turnout from the oil crisis, particurlarly in South Korea and Japan.
"It seems to me that domestic political pressure in the United States is very, very high," Reiche said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was more direct, saying on Friday that it was wrong to ease sanctions against Russia for whatever reason. The sentiment was echoed by Norway’s Prime Minister, who also said sanctions should not be eased.
Oil prices held gains above $100 Friday and most equity markets dropped after Iran's leader called for the blocking of the crucial Strait of Hormuz and the opening up of new fronts in the war against the United States and Israel.
With the conflict heading towards its third week and showing no signs of ending, investors are growing increasingly worried about an extended crisis that could fan inflation and hammer the global economy.
