Kremlin as fascist Third Reich, unable to win on the battlefield, resorts to missile terror: Serhii Zgurets' column

Ukraine needs air defense systems

A virtual meeting of the leaders of the G7 took place yesterday as a reaction to Russia's missile terror against Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelenskyy's speech was a signpost that determined Ukraine's military needs. The President thanked German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for the IRIS-T complex, which we will soon receive, and expressed hope that the US will hand over anti-missile and anti-aircraft systems to us in the near future or in the future. That is, there is an understanding that Ukraine is still trying to get Patriot complexes from the US. There was also an appeal to France and Italy to receive the SAMP-T complex, which, like the Patriot, can engage ballistic targets, including Kinzhal and Iskander. In addition, it was said that more missiles are needed for such complexes, and this is what will be discussed at the meeting of defense ministers in the Rammstein format. In addition, the issue of combating the Iranian Shahed drones, which, according to Zelenskyy, Russia ordered in the amount of 2,400 pieces, will be raised. Tomorrow there will be an indicative meeting of the defense ministers.

Missile terror of the Russian enemy

The Kremlin, like the fascist Third Reich, unable to win on the battlefield, resorts to missile terror. For the second day in a row, our cities are withstanding the Russian missile barrage. On October 10, 84 cruise missiles entered the airspace of Ukraine, of which 43 were shot down. Yesterday, the enemy continued to terrorize our critical infrastructure.  28 cruise missiles and about two dozen Shahed drones were fired. According to the results, as reported by the command of Ukraine's Air Force at 1:00 p.m., 20 cruise missiles and 13 Shahed drones were destroyed, which are quite good indicators of air defense work. At the same time, those enemy missiles that break through our air defenses are causing us damage, which is what worries us.

Putin is trying to save the situation with the massive use of missile strikes

According to retired Lieutenant General Ihor Romanenko, it is necessary to evaluate the enemy, the military-political aspect of these actions. Putin is trying to save the situation with the massive use of missile strikes. He has been asking our leadership for two months to proceed to negotiations, namely on the legitimization of seized Ukrainian lands. Our leadership does not agree with this, nor do the Ukrainians support such an idea. Therefore, after the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), Putin arrived impressed and set the task of holding a mobilization and a referendum in order to legitimize his rights regarding the use of weapons of mass destruction. But the allies proved to him a clear position on this matter.

Putin understands that the situation on the fronts is getting worse for the Russian army, so he is trying to change it. He appointed a new commander, Surovikin, who commanded the Caspian Air Force and is familiar with the situation in this type of armed forces. Surovikin gained experience back in Syria, where he was responsible for the air component and received carte blanche from Putin. After all, Russia does not have the opportunity to repeat such attacks every day. They use all types of missiles: cruise, ballistic, various types of applications, both land-based Iskanders, Kalibr missiles, and sea-based and air systems.

Our anti-aircraft defense, which still has Soviet weapons, proved to be quite effective. According to the indicators, it is about 50%, and the criteria for good indicators of the use of air defense systems are 30-35%. Here it is 50%, but we are not happy with it. Unfortunately, we have few, if any, modern air defense equipment. We don't even have anti-missile weapons, because even IRIS-T and NASAMS were developed against aerodynamic targets, which include aircraft, helicopters, UAVs, but they are not effective against ballistic missiles like Kinzhal and Iskander. We need modern and quantitative air defense equipment, and our military will quickly learn to work on them. We must also not forget about modern fighters, which we also need.

Is it possible to protect against enemy attacks on bridges and dams?

According to retired Lieutenant General Ihor Romanenko, we have seen that they have been using weapons for a long time in relation to bridges and continue to do so in the areas of hostilities. Unfortunately, there are precedents, we remember the Kryvyi Rih hydraulic structures, which were struck. That is, you can expect everything from the terrorist Russian Federation. And Ukraine's Armed Forces, realizing this, are preparing for worst-case scenarios. We are working on strengthening the air defense system. We still need medium and long-range anti-aircraft systems, as well as 4+ fighter jets.

Repeated attack on October 11: how does the Russian enemy carry out reconnaissance of targets?

Ihor Romanenko, a retired Lieutenant General, told me that the Russian forces are using all possible means. Of course, they have space capabilities, as well as air capabilities - this is a modernized A-50 aircraft that can conduct aerial reconnaissance, radio-electronic, and radio-technical intelligence, that is, everything, including intelligence gathering. We study this experience and try to work on prejudice to minimize losses and be more effective in the application of air defense.

Maneuvers of cruise missiles in our sky

This is a struggle, or even a hunt, that is, air and anti-aircraft maneuvers and flight routes are studied, understanding that they can change, that is why the positions change. The principle is used, according to which the position must be changed after the shot. We see how this confrontation is taking place, unfortunately, on our territory.

IRIS-T to be soon in Ukraine

In the next few days, as the German Minister of Defense said, Ukraine will receive the first battery of the IRIS-T anti-aircraft missile complex from the German company Diehl Defense.