Kyiv's Buk claims in Ukrainian army like saying there is no water in sea - Russian Defense Ministry
MOSCOW. June 5 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Defense Ministry has called "a lie" the allegation by Ukrainian Presidential Advisor Ihor Smeshko that there are no Buk surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
"The claim by the Ukrainian presidential advisor is absolutely absurd. Such a blatant lie coming from a high-ranking official is simply improper. The allegation that Ukraine has no Buk systems is tantamount to an assertion that there is no water in the sea," Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov told reporters on Friday.
He cited a number of examples when Kyiv officials said the Ukrainian army did have Buk SAM systems.
"I will cite just a few pieces of evidence out of a hundred of existing ones: in early June all Ukrainian media outlets reported, citing the head of the Ukrainian Armed Forces anti-aircraft missile troops, Maj. Gen. Dmitry Karpenko, that the 'the state company UkrOboronServis signed an act of acceptance of a repaired Buk-M1 SAM system and that Ukraine's first repaired Buk-M1 will enter service very soon," Konashenkov said.