Putin says Russian anti-aircraft forces 'cracking' enemy weapons 'like nuts'


FE Team | Published: June 05, 2022 09:19:06 | Updated: June 06, 2022 17:10:17


Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview to Rossiya-1 TV channel in Sochi, Russia Jun 3, 2022. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin/REUTERS

Russian anti-aircraft forces have shot down dozens of Ukrainian weapons and are "cracking them like nuts," President Vladimir Putin said in a brief excerpt of an interview aired on Saturday, Reuters reports.

RIA news agency, which first cited the comments, quoted Putin as responding to a question about US-supplied arms by saying, Russia was coping easily and had already destroyed the weapons by the dozen.

But the clip of an interview to be aired on Sunday made clear that Putin had in fact been responding to a different question, which was not shown.

"Our anti-aircraft systems are crunching them like nuts. Dozens have been destroyed," Putin said.

Although the exact kind of weapon was not clear, Russia says it has destroyed both aircraft and missiles fielded by Ukraine.

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