Putin's statement about patrolling all Black Sea with hypersonic jets is aimed to show off Russia's military power – UK intelligence
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The latest UK Intelligence report says Putin's statement about patrolling the Black Sea with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles can be seen as an attempt to show Russian military power.
The dictator's rhetoric is primarily aimed at a local audience, analysts say.
During his visit to China on October 18, Putin announced that Russia would begin fighter patrols in the eastern Black Sea using MiG-31I aircraft armed with X-47M2 Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missiles.
Putin referred to the strengthening of the US naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean at the expense of ships with weapons systems with a declared range of up to 2,000 kilometers.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 21 October 2023.
Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/fTCapAnT9f
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— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) October 21, 2023
British intelligence indicates that Putin purposefully emphasized the presence of MiG-31 "Kinzhals" and their declared capabilities.
This was "almost certainly" done as a "strategic message" to show that Russia can continue to produce and operate new weapons despite the war.
Nevertheless, the missiles are still at the stage of operational testing, so their effectiveness in Ukraine has been low so far.
Ukraine's Air Force has already responded to Putin's statement by saying "nothing would change dramatically."
