11 Mar 2022 21:44

Russian Defense Ministry says working to determine Eastern European country that supplied Ukraine with Igla portable surface-to-air missile systems

MOSCOW. March 11 (Interfax) - The Russian Defense Ministry is working to determine which Eastern European state supplied Igla portable surface-to-air missile systems to Ukraine.

A new batch of these systems was seized by Russian troops in the Kherson region, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Friday.

"Inspection of the serial numbers of the portable surface-to-air missile systems has now been organized to determine the country that supplied these weapons from Eastern Europe," he said.

The Russian Igla portable surface-to-air missile system is intended for covering military units and military and civilian facilities from direct air attacks by tactical aircraft (fighter jets, attack planes, and bombers), combat helicopters, and also destruction of cruise missiles and drones.

"More Igla portable surface-to-air missile systems were seized yesterday in the Kherson region. Ukrainian nationalists, hastily retreating from their positions, abandoned these systems in boxes along with other weapons and munitions," Konashenkov said.

"Russian troops are seizing a lot of portable surface-to-air missile systems of various types during successful offensive actions against Ukrainian nationalists," Konashenkov said.

"By handing out portable surface-to-air missile systems received from the European countries and the United States without control, the Kyiv nationalist regime is creating a long-term threat of a terrorist attack to civilian aircraft," he said.

"This applies not only to Ukraine, but in particular to the European countries that are sending hundreds of mercenaries and neo-Nazis to participate in the fighting. Russian troops will continue looking for and seizing portable surface-to-air missile systems abandoned by nationalists to prevent the deadly weapons from falling into the hands of terrorists and their subsequent exportation from Ukraine," Konashenkov said.