Amidst ongoing massive missile attacks from Russia, Ukrainian authorities are facing a new challenge: a shortage of missiles for Patriot air defense systems. Yuriy Ignat, Head of the Communications Department of the Ukrainian Air Force, stated in his announcement that the lack of ammunition makes it impossible to effectively counter enemy ballistic missiles.
Lack of Missiles for Air Defense: Official Admission
Ignat stated directly that Ukraine has no missiles for the Patriot air defense system, resulting in enemy ballistic missiles not being intercepted. According to him, when Russia launches a massive strike, for example, with 28 ballistic missiles, official reports record the result as "28/0" — meaning not a single missile was shot down. This has triggered a wave of criticism in Ukrainian media, which circulates such reports, creating an impression of the country's complete defenselessness.
"Is it not enough information that the enemy launched a massive strike on the city with ballistic missiles, with hits in 10 locations?! That is what we are talking about! There are no missiles for Patriots...", — Ignat emphasized, pointing out that the real problem lies not in the inefficiency of air defense, but in the lack of ammunition.
The Problem of Information Warfare
According to Ignat, Ukrainian media, by publishing headlines like "Not a single missile was shot down," are effectively doing the work of Russian propaganda. These reports are then used by Russian resources to demonstrate the "inefficiency" of Ukrainian defense, which increases psychological pressure on the population. Ignat urged Ukrainian media to abandon such formulations, which, in his opinion, "will help no one" and only harm the morale of society.
Contradictory Data
On the one hand, Ignat claims that the problem lies exclusively in the shortage of missiles for the Patriot, and not in the technical inability of air defense to shoot down ballistic missiles. On the other hand, some sources indicate that even with ammunition available, the effectiveness of air defense may be limited due to the high speed and maneuverability of modern Russian ballistic missiles, such as the "Zircon".
In particular, Ignat previously explained that "Zircon" missiles can be shot down, but there are serious problems with their detection and tracking at low altitudes. This creates a dilemma: even if Ukraine had missiles for the Patriot, it is unclear how effectively they could counter such threats.
Safety and Public Information
Despite the ammunition shortage, the Ukrainian Air Force continues to inform Ukrainians about air threats via Telegram, Viber, and WhatsApp messengers. However, as Bloomberg reported on July 11, the Armed Forces ceased including information about missiles launched by Russia in their daily briefings. This decision was made as part of forced security measures to avoid revealing tactical data to the enemy.
Alarming Forecasts for the Future
Ignat also made an alarming statement that Russia could repeat a massive strike at any time. This underscores the need for an urgent solution to the problem of Patriot missile supplies, as well as the strengthening of other air defense elements. Without this, Ukraine will remain vulnerable in the face of continuing attacks, which could lead to new casualties and destruction.
