Belarusian ministry says air defenses downed Ukraine’s missile

December 29, BPN. The Belarusian defense ministry has commented on reports suggesting that a Ukrainian missile fell in the Brest region. It claims that it was shot down by Belarus’ air defense unit.

“Wreckage was found in an agricultural field near the village of Harbacha, Ivanava district, Brest region. A probe tentatively established that the wreckage belonged to an S-300 anti-aircraft guided missile, fired from the territory of Ukraine,” the ministry said.

Earlier that day, a Łukašenka-affiliated Telegram channel reported that “between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m., a Ukrainian S-300 missile was spotted falling from Ukraine onto Belarus.”

The S-300 surface-to-air missile systems are in service in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.

They are capable of engaging a variety of targets at ranges from just a few kilometers to 75-200 kilometers. Both the Russians and the Ukrainians use them due to their wide availability and high efficiency.

Analysts say that because of a shortage of high-precision weapons in Russia, its engineers repurpose S-300/S-400 missiles for strikes against ground targets.