Putin orders Kinzhal missile-equipped aircraft to Patrol Black Sea's neutral zone
Russian president Vladimir Putin announced that Russian aircraft armed with Kinzhal missiles will patrol the neutral zone of airspace above the Black Sea. The patrols will be conducted by the Russian Aerospace Forces using the MiG-31 aircraft, which are equipped with Kinzhal missiles that have a range of over 1000 kilometers, although previous claims stated a range of over 2000 kilometers.
President Putin did not clarify the rationale behind deploying such aircraft over the Black Sea, considering that Ukrainian forces predominantly use sea drones and missiles, which the Kinzhal missiles may not be able to intercept.
Last week, Ukraine damaged two vessels near Sevastopol- the missile carrier Buyan and the patrol ship Pavel Derzhavin. Both vessels were attacked by Ukrainian experimental sea drones.