Putin Announces Destruction of 5 American Patriot Air Defense Systems Near Kyiv

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that Russian forces have destroyed 5 American Patriot air defense systems near Kyiv. He made this statement while speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

“If we have destroyed five Patriot complexes near Kyiv, then why should we destroy any buildings and structures in the center of Kyiv? There are no such limitations. We are not doing this for a number of reasons,” Putin stated during the forum, responding to questions about drone attacks in Russia.

The President declined to elaborate on what considerations he was referring to.

It is entirely unclear what Vladimir Putin meant when he talked about the “5 Patriot complexes.” Officially, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have received two Patriot systems, each with six launchers. One battery was provided by the United States, and the other by Germany.

During his speech, Putin added that drone attacks on the Belgorod region and the Kremlin were attempts to provoke Moscow into retaliatory actions. “Everyone is waiting for us to start pressing buttons, but we will not do that,” he said.