Ukraine announces the downing of 6 Russian hypersonic missiles before the visit of a Chinese envoy to Kiev

Ukraine said Tuesday it had repelled a barrage of Russian missiles and shot down six Russian Kinjal hypersonic missiles in a night attack, hours before a Chinese envoy was due to visit Kiev.

While Kiev said it had destroyed all Russian missiles in the air, Moscow said the missiles "hit all its targets", including "deployment points of the Ukrainian armed forces" and Western ammunition and weapons depots.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov wrote on Twitter: "Another remarkable achievement of the Ukrainian Air Force! Last night, defenders of our skies shot down six Russian Kinjal hypersonic missiles and 12 others."

Kinjal missiles are a type of weapon that Russian President Vladimir Putin calls "invincible" because their hypersonic speed allows them to avoid being intercepted by the majority of air defense systems.

At night, AFP journalists in Kiev watched Ukrainian air defenses fired and illuminated the sky to destroy Russian missiles targeting the capital.

Ukraine first said it shot down a Russian Kinjal missile in early May thanks to a powerful U.S. Patriot counter-defense system delivered to Kiev in April.

According to Ukrainian Chief of Staff Valery Zaluzhny, Russia attacked Ukraine "from the north, south and east" with Kinjal missiles, Kalibr cruise missiles, S-400 anti-aircraft and Iskandar ballistic missiles, but also with Iranian-made drones.

"They have all been destroyed," he said on Telegram.

"The Russians launched a complex attack from several directions simultaneously," the military authority in Kiev said in a Telegram statement, adding: "It was exceptional in its intensity, during which a maximum number of rockets were fired in a very short period."

For its part, the Russian army confirmed that it targeted military facilities in Ukraine at night with a barrage of missiles, noting that it "hit all targets." According to the Defense Ministry, the strikes targeted "deployment points of Ukrainian forces", Western ammunition and weapons depots. It also confirmed the destruction of a US Patriot anti-aircraft system in Kiev and the interception of seven British Storm Shadow missiles.

According to Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko, three people were wounded in the attack, which took place hours before Chinese envoy Li Hui arrived in Ukraine for a two-day visit.

Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui tasked with discussing a settlement of the conflict in Ukraine and former Chinese ambassador to Moscow will discuss a "political settlement" to the war in Ukraine. He will also visit Poland, France, Germany and Russia.

The new nightly attack also comes a day after Ukrainian President Zelenskiy returned to Kiev after a European tour during which he visited Italy, Germany, France and the United Kingdom.