KYIV - Ukraine said on Tuesday it had shot down six Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a super weapon Moscow had previously touted as all but unstoppable.

It was the first time Ukraine claimed to have struck an entire volley of multiple hypersonic missiles, and, if confirmed, would be a demonstration of the effectiveness of newly deployed Western air defences. Early on Tuesday, air-raid sirens blared across nearly all of Ukraine, and were heard over Kyiv and its region for more than three hours.

Bright flashes lit up the night sky over Kyiv during the eighth air attack on the capital in May.  

At least three people were injured in Kyiv, with at least one building damaged by debris, said Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Telegram. 

Mr Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s city military administration, said: “It was exceptional in its density – the maximum number of... missiles in the shortest period of time.”

General Serhiy Naev, commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces, said: “The enemy’s mission is to sow panic and create chaos. However, in the northern operational zone (including Kyiv), everything is under complete control.”

After a weeks-long hiatus, Russia – which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 – resumed its tactic of long-range missile strikes in late April.

It has launched a series of attacks in recent days, often targeting Kyiv, as Ukraine prepares to launch a counteroffensive to try to take back land occupied by Russia.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said it had destroyed a United States-built Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system with a Kinzhal missile, the Zvezda military news outlet reported. But General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said all had been successfully intercepted.

The Ukrainian military said all 18 missiles, six Iranian Shahed drones and three reconnaissance drones fired at Kyiv overnight were shot down, though it did not make clear how many were launched at the capital. It said the missiles shot down included six Kinzhal ballistic missiles fired from aircraft, nine Kalibr cruise missiles launched from ships in the Black Sea, and three Iskander land-based missiles.

Zvezda quoted the Russian ministry as saying the attacks had been aimed at Ukrainian fighting units and ammunition storage sites.

The Kinzhal, which means “dagger” in Russian, is one of six “next-generation” weapons unveiled by President Vladimir Putin in 2018 when he boasted that it could not be shot down by any of the world’s air defence systems.

Ukraine air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said: “The work of air defences was extremely successful. Six Kinzhals are an impressive indicator of that.”

With Ukrainian forces preparing to go on the offensive for the first time in six months, Russia is now launching long-range air strikes at the highest frequency of the war.

It has launched eight drone and missile volleys so far in May, compared with weekly during the winter and a lull in March and April. Kyiv says it has been shooting most down.

‘Under control’

The past week has seen Ukrainian forces make their biggest gains on the battlefield since last November, recapturing several square kilometres of territory on the northern and southern outskirts of the battlefield city of Bakhmut.

Moscow has acknowledged that some of its troops have retreated but denies that its battle lines are crumbling.

Kyiv says those advances are localised and do not yet represent the full force of its upcoming counteroffensive, which is expected to take advantage of hundreds of modern tanks and armoured vehicles sent by the West in 2023.

A Ukrainian counteroffensive would bring the next major phase of the war after a huge Russian winter offensive that failed to capture significant new territory despite the bloodiest ground combat in Europe since World War II.

Moscow currently claims to have annexed around a sixth of its neighbour’s territory.

Ukraine turned back Russian troops from the outskirts of Kyiv early in the war and recaptured territory in two counteroffensives in the second half of 2022, but has kept its forces on the defensive since November.

Russia says its invasion was necessary to counter a threat to its security posed by Kyiv’s close ties to the West. Ukraine and its allies call it an unprovoked and unlawful war of conquest, and Kyiv says it will not stop fighting until all Russian troops leave its land.

Meanwhile, European leaders were meeting in Iceland on Tuesday for a two-day Council of Europe summit meant to show their support for Ukraine.

According to a draft of the final declaration, the leaders will approve a new Register of Damages, a mechanism to record and document evidence and claims of damage, loss or injury incurred as a result of the Russian invasion.

European leaders such as Germany’s Olaf Scholz, Britain’s Rishi Sunak and France’s Emmanuel Macron are attending the summit, which Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky will address via videolink. REUTERS