Russia Resorting to Out of Date Missiles as Weapon Stocks Run Low: Ukraine

The Russian military has been accused of using "outdated" missiles during its invasion of Ukraine, according to officials in Kyiv.

On Sunday, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine made the claim in an operations update that was shared on Facebook.

The September 4 post said offensives continued toward Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

It continued: "Over the past 24 hours, the enemy has launched more than 10 missiles and more than 24 airstrikes on military and civilian objects on the territory of Ukraine.

"In particular, civilian infrastructure was affected in the areas of Peremoha, Husarivka, Novomykhailivka, Bilohirya settlements."

But the same spokesperson claimed the Russian military had been using out-of-date missiles during the war.

It added: "Due to the lack of high-precision weapons, the enemy began to use outdated S-300 anti-aircraft guided missiles more often.

"More than 500 such missiles were launched on the territory of Ukraine, some of which did not reach the target. The occupiers are armed with several thousand such missiles, but most of them are unusable."

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a U.S. think tank, the Soviet-made S-300 has a maximum range of 93.2 miles while the S-300V has a top range of 62.1 miles. Although designed as anti-aircraft weapons, they can also be used to attack ground targets.

While Russia is now reportedly reliant on the S-300, Ukraine has made use of the U.S.-supplied M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).

The Ukrainian military has used HIMAS to strike Russian bases and arms depots, as well as bridges across the Dnipro River, separating the Kherson region, which fell early in the, was, from the rest of the Moscow-controlled areas of Ukraine.

HIMARS gives Ukraine the ability to strike from greater distances with precision and according to the CSIS, the Block 1 and Block 1A models have a range of 102.5 and 186.4, respectively.

Russia has said its forces have destroyed HIMARS, but none of its claims have been independently confirmed.

Last month, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had intercepted 44 Ukrainian HIMARS in the south of the country but officials did not claim to have hit any of the launchers themselves.

Newsweek has contacted the Kremlin and the office of the Ukrainian President for comment.

Ukrainian General Mykola Zhirnov, leader of the Kyiv City Military Administration, recently claimed that 50 to 70 percent of Russian missiles are shot down "by aircraft and by anti-aircraft missile units."

He added: "But, unfortunately, today we cannot ensure 100% effectiveness of air defense operations, this is due to objective reasons—insufficient number of reconnaissance means, aviation and anti-aircraft missile systems.

"Basically, these are Soviet systems, which do not have the same efficiency and reliability as the air defense equipment of NATO partner countries."