Russia spreads false claims about the ineffectiveness of Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense and its location in residential buildings

So, during the night of July 13-14, the russians launched an attack on Ukraine using 17 Iranian-made Shahed-136/131 attack drones from the southeast (Primorsko-Akhtarsk).

On the morning of July 14, the (pro)russian Telegram channels claimed that Ukraine’s anti-aircraft fire had managed to shoot down only 50% of these Shahed drones.

However, that same morning, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine officially reported that during the combat operations in the southern and eastern regions, they had successfully destroyed 16 out of the 17 Shahed drones. This clearly indicates that the effectiveness of the anti-aircraft defense that night was much higher than the claimed 50%.

russian propaganda employs another deceptive tactic regarding Ukrainian air defense by suggesting that these systems are intentionally placed in residential buildings of large cities, thereby putting civilians at risk.

russian propaganda avoids acknowledging the primary reason behind the engagement of Ukrainian air defense, which is russian aggression and the launching of missiles and UAVs by russian occupiers within Ukrainian airspace. If these enemy targets were not present in Ukrainian skies, there would be no need for Ukrainian air defense to deploy missiles.

Of course, there are numerous critical facilities within urban areas that require maximum anti-aircraft protection. Placing air defense systems outside the cities would result in reduced reaction time to engage enemy targets, leading to a lower success rate in shooting them down. This is precisely what the occupiers want.

Recently, on yet another pro-russian Telegram channel, there was an attempt at manipulation, claiming that the speaker of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Yuriy Ihnat, admitted to deliberately locating air defense equipment in residential areas.

Once again, there is no mention of the fact that the cause of falling debris and the threat to civilians is not due to Ukrainian air defense but rather to russian missiles and attack UAVs. Additionally, not a word about the reality that large cities have many vital assets that require protection, necessitating a dense placement of air defense systems.

Well, the propagandists also presented an incomplete quote from Yuriy Ihnat regarding this matter. 

The speaker of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces did acknowledge that currently, Ukraine lacks a sufficient number of air defense systems to establish a hypothetical “ring” of protection across the entire country. It should be remembered that Ukraine has an extensive front line, stretching almost 2,500 kilometers in length.