It was supposed to be a Russian “wonder weapon”, but it turned out to be just another example of Vladimir Putin’s military promises and insufficient implementation.

The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal – which means “dagger” in Russian – was positioned as an ultra-modern hypersonic missile, “invincible”, according to Putin, to Western air defenses. In the first months of a full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine, it seemed that this was the case. The missile was used in the first year of the war to successfully hit several targets in Ukraine, no doubt causing significant damage.

a turning point

That all changed when Ukraine received American-made Patriot PAC-2 and PAC-3 air defense systems in April. PAC-3, the latest iteration of the venerable American system, was originally developed as part of America’s Strategic Defense Initiative, nicknamed “Star Wars” by critics, first introduced in the early 1980s by President Ronald Reagan to counter ballistic missiles.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, in just over two weeks, Ukrainian Patriots shot down seven of the seven Kinzhals fired at targets in Ukraine. Pentagon Press Secretary Brigadier General Pat Ryder first shot down confirmed at a press conference on May 9, and another administration official who spoke with the New York Times on May 16 confirmed other interceptions.

During a May 16 attack aimed directly at the Patriot system, part of the platform sustained “minor” damage, according to US officials, which was repaired within a day. The Kremlin, of course, maintains the fiction that all of its missiles have successfully hit their targets. “The fake report that the Kinzhal was allegedly intercepted is an attempt to wishful thinking,” a source in the Russian Defense Ministry. told a government publication TASS.

Even if the Ukrainian military exaggerates its defensive capabilities, a Russian missile that fell anywhere in Kyiv would be discovered by locals and captured on social media. This has not happened since the Patriot missile batteries arrived.

The story goes on

Hypersonic threat assessment

The Kinzhal entered service in December 2017. Two years later, Putin said that this and other Russian hypersonic weapons proved that Russia led the world in hypersonic capabilities. This boast was reminiscent of the bravado of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev in the late 1950s, when he claimed that Soviet ICBMs were rolling off the factory floor “like sausages”, feeding the false perception in the United States that the United States was at a disadvantage and suffering. from a missile gap with Moscow. “We have a situation unique in modern history when they are trying to catch up with us,” Putin said. “Not a single country has hypersonic weapons, let alone intercontinental-range hypersonic weapons.”

Hey was wrong.

In fact, the Dagger is not so impressive. It is an upgraded version of the older Russian 9K720 Iskander ground-launched ballistic missile modified to be air-launched from Russian aircraft. As far as Putin’s claim about hypersonic weapon speeds, that’s true in the same way that all ballistic missiles since the German V-2 rockets began to demolish London during World War II have reached hypersonic speeds at certain stages of flight.

Despite Putin’s loud claims, air-launched ballistic missiles are not a new technology.

The GAM-87 Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile was developed by the United States in the late 1950s and has a top speed of Mach 12, well above the speed that the Dagger can reach. However, the project was ultimately canceled in 1962 when US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara assessed that the system provided very few advantages over the United States’ existing arsenal of land-based and submarine-launched ballistic missiles.

Russian scientists accused of treason

Putin’s statements were based on confusion over the definition of “hypersonic” as well as on the combination of the “Dagger” with a new generation of hypersonic weapons. Hypersonic cruise missiles and hypersonic glide vehicles are capable of maneuvering — for example, evading air defenses — at speeds in excess of Mach 5, which the Dagger cannot. This makes next-generation hypersonic weapons much more difficult to intercept than traditional hypersonic ballistic missiles.

Despite Russia’s exaggerated claims, the Kinzhal was still an out-of-reach target for Soviet-origin Ukrainian air defense systems. A Ukrainian government source told Yahoo News that providing such air defense systems, primarily providing an invaluable shield to the Ukrainian people, is a cheap way for Ukraine’s Western partners to get real combat data on their effectiveness against the latest Russian weapons.

The Russian arrogance that the system worked perfectly seemed even more incredible in light of the arrest of the third scientist responsible for the development of the Dagger on charges of “high treason.” On May 16, the same day that Ukrainian patriots shot down six approaching Kinzhals, Russian state media reported on the arrest of Valery Zvegintsev. Zvegintsev joins Anatoly Maslov and Alexander Shiplyuk, two other prominent Russian scientists who worked on the Kinzhal project and were arrested on treason charges in the summer of 2022.

Since August, more than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled their homes to escape systematic violence from government soldiers in Myanmar. The UN called the actions taken by Myanmar forces against the group “a textbook example of ethnic cleansing”.

A report published by Amnesty International On Wednesday, mass rapes, killings and burnings of Rohingyas were documented in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. The report includes extensive interviews with Rohingya refugees who tell stories of burning alive, sexual abuse and mass shootings by soldiers.

To escape persecution, Rohingya refugees are fleeing en masse to neighboring Bangladesh, a country some call reluctant host for the thousands of refugees outside. Conditions in Bangladesh show refugee camps beyond the possibilitiesas organizations struggled to keep up with humanitarian aid.

To learn more: Rohingya Muslims were denial of citizenship in Myanmar since 1982, although they have lived in the area since the 12th century. They are not considered one of the country’s official ethnic groups. Thus, their Lack of official identity forbids them to use government services and travel.

Officials from Myanmar, where the majority practice Buddhism, say the Rohingya are actually immigrants from Bangladesh to justify their exclusion from the group. This latest burst of violence comes from Repression in Myanmar after clashes with the Arakanese Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA). After the government declared ARSA a terrorist organization, the retaliation extended to hundreds of Rohingya villages.

Where to donate: MARRIAGE, leading NGO based in Bangladesh, is expanding humanitarian efforts to provide clean water, health, sanitation and childcare for Myanmar refugees. You can learn more about their efforts Here.

IN emergency appeal was made by the Committee of Emergency Situations for Emergency Crisis Relief Funds. DEC distributes funds up to 13 member aid organizations.
UNHCR, UNICEF another save the children have donation pages dedicated to the crisis, as well as International Rescue Committee. CNN Public Good Page provides a handy resource for finding NGOs that match your charitable goals.

To give helping the hungrytry Action against hunger or World Food Program.

Be sure to research the organizations receiving your financial donations, not only to find the best organization to suit your goals, but also to avoid potential scams. For the latest information on relief organizations and charities, visit guidestar or Charity Navigator to make sure your donations are going in the right direction.