Russian missiles more powerful than those supplied to Ukraine by West – Putin

The Russian military possesses longer-range and more powerful missiles than any of the Western analogues supplied to Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has said.

Russia’s Iskander short-range ballistic missile system has a similar payload to all three modifications of the US-made ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System), but boasts a longer range, Putin said during the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, on Thursday.

“The new American PrSM (Precision Strike Missile) system is in no way superior to its Russian counterparts in terms of its characteristics,” he added.

Earlier this month, the US, UK and France allowed Ukraine to use the long-range weapons that they’d supplied earlier to conduct strikes on internationally-recognized Russian territory. Several such attacks have already taken place. Kiev’s forces are currently equipped with American ATACMS as well as British Storm Shadow and French SCALP missiles.

“We know, of course, how many relevant weapons systems our potential opponent has; where exactly they are located; how many weapons have been delivered to Ukraine and how many are planned to be delivered,” Putin stressed.

The Russian president said that “no arms deliveries, even of the most advanced weapons, to Ukraine will change the situation on the battlefield.”

He also pointed out that Moscow vastly surpasses Ukraine’s Western backers in terms of production of long-range weapons.

“As for the output of the relevant missile systems, in Russia it is ten times higher than the combined production in all NATO countries, and next year it will grow by another 25-30%,” Putin said.

The president noted that Russia’s arsenal already includes Kalibr cruise missiles as well as Kinzhal and Zircon hypersonic missiles, which “in terms of their characteristics have no analogues in the world.” Their production is now “in full swing” and is being extended further, he said. 

In the coming the years, new state-of-the-art hypersonic systems would be added to the country’s “menu,” Putin promised.