Massive Missile Attack Rocks Russia’s Kursk: Ukraine Strikes Back with Foreign Weapons

Reuters reported on Monday that Ukraine conducted a massive missile strike on Russia’s Kursk border region using foreign-made missiles.

During a two-day nighttime operation, the Kyiv Post also reported that Ukrainian forces targeted advanced air defense systems in the Kursk region.

The Ukrainian General Staff confirmed that the attack targeted an S-400 radar base. The S-400 air defense system was responsible for engaging ground targets. In capability, the S-400 surface-to-air missile system is comparable to the U.S. Patriot air defense system. Still, it comes with a hefty price tag of approximately 200 million dollars per battery.

Kursk Governor Alexei Smirnov claimed via Telegram that Russian air defense fighters successfully thwarted the attack, intercepting seven Ukrainian missiles and seven drones during the night.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported the same day that twenty-three Ukrainian drones were neutralized over Russian territory but made no mention of missile attacks.

Roman Alyokhin, a pro-Russian military analyst, described the incident, “Kursk was subjected to a massive attack by foreign-made missiles. It was very loud, and there were a lot of them (missiles).”

Ukrainian forces have maintained operations in the Kursk region since Russia’s August counteroffensive. A senior Ukrainian military official disclosed that they had lost over 40% of previously held territory due to Russian counterattacks. Ukraine’s control had extended to approximately 531 square miles, but recent reports indicate this has been reduced to about 309 square miles.

Russian President Vladimir Putin aims to reclaim the lost Kursk territory before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20 next year. Analysts suggest this is a strategic move to maintain leverage in potential peace negotiations proposed by Trump.

U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to deploy American-made missiles against Russian territory on November 17. Ukraine launched U.S.-made long-range ATACMS surface-to-surface missiles at military installations in Bryansk, Russia, two days later.

The following day, Ukraine targeted military facilities in Kursk with British-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles. Global Defense Corp reported approximately 500 North Korean troops were killed in this attack, though no corroborating evidence was provided.

Russia retaliated on November 21 by test-firing its newly developed hypersonic medium-range ballistic missile Oreshini in Dnipro, central Ukraine. However, reports suggest the strike did not inflict significant damage.