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What did Russia's missile barrage on 26 July 2023 show?
Summary
A look back at a day when air defences downed dozens of cruise missiles, set against a new US aid package and a week of strikes.
How well were Ukraine's air defences holding up against Russian cruise missiles on 26 July 2023? One day's reporting offers a partial answer, and the surrounding days add context.
On 26 July 2023, Russia launched cruise missiles at Kyiv Oblast, Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Kirovohrad Oblast. Air Force Commander Mykola Oleschuk said 36 targets were shot down, among them three Kalibr missiles and 33 Kh-101 and Kh-55 cruise missiles. The figures were given as targets destroyed, and the reports as published gave no account of damage or casualties from the attack.
A week of strikes
The barrage came after several days of Russian attacks elsewhere. On 24 July 2023, Russian forces attacked Odesa Oblast with drones, destroying grain warehouses at the Reni Commercial Seaport and injuring seven civilians. The same day, a Russian missile strike on Kostiantynivka killed a child and wounded six people. In Bakhmut, Dylan Collins, a journalist for Agence France-Presse, was wounded in a Russian drone attack.
The pattern was of strikes on infrastructure and on populated areas, with the 26 July launch aimed at three central and western oblasts.
Western support
On 25 July 2023, the United States announced a $400 million military aid package for Ukraine. It included anti-tank and air defence missiles, 32 Stryker armoured fighting vehicles, Hydra 70 rockets and Black Hornet Nano surveillance drones. The air defence missiles in the package were part of the same week in which Ukraine reported intercepting dozens of incoming cruise missiles, though the reports did not link the two.
The wider picture
The war also reached Russian territory. On 24 July 2023, two drones damaged buildings in Moscow, including one near the Defence Ministry headquarters. Separately, the United States announced sanctions on three senior Malian officials, among them Defence Minister Sadio Camara, for allegedly helping to facilitate the presence of the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group in Mali.
What the day showed
Taken together, the reports describe a conflict being fought on several levels: long-range missile salvoes against Ukraine, drone attacks on ports and cities, strikes inside Russia, and continued Western military and diplomatic measures. The 26 July 2023 intercept tally, 36 targets reported downed, was the day's clearest measure of the contest between Russian missile launches and Ukraine's air defences.
