An air missile system was spotted near a stadium in Moscow where Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a four-minute speech Wednesday, according to multiple reports.
A Pantsir-S1 missile system was installed outside the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow where thousands of Russians — including people who were paid $7 to attend the event — gathered to hear Putin’s patriotic speech, Meduza reported.
On Twitter, the Kyiv Post shared footage captured by TV Rain showing the air defense systems installed near the stadium.
Mobile air missile systems such as Pantsir are designed to prevent any aircraft, cruise missiles and drones from striking the Russian capital.
In addition to the air defense system, two military trucks were also spotted within the vicinity of the stadium. It is speculated that the trucks contained radio-electronic suppression systems.
“Most likely, these are electronic warfare systems,” Russian military expert Alexander Khramchikhin said, as translated via Google Translate. “They are needed to ensure that nothing arrives from Ukraine. For example, a kamikaze drone.
The air defense missile systems were deployed on the rooftops of homes in downtown Moscow last month as part of the Kremlin’s preparation against a potential attack on the Russian capital, as per The Guardian.
The surface-to-air missiles were also seen installed near Putin’s Novo-Ogarevo and Valdai residences, in the Kremlin, and on top of Russia’s Defense Ministry building. At least three soldiers were also reported to be stationed in Putin’s Valdai residences at all times.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year. Russian troops attacked Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv multiple times throughout the nearly year-long war. In contrast, Moscow has yet to be targeted by any attack even as military bases deep within Russian territory have been hit.
Ukraine is currently preparing its defenses in anticipation of a possible new Russian offensive. Kyiv is also casting an anxious eye on the possibility of a renewed Russian aggression via Belarus and Moldova, as per The New York Times.
As of Wednesday, Russia lost 145,060 military personnel in the war in Ukraine, including 620 who were killed over the past day, according to estimates from the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
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