Russia’s defence ministry claimed it had destroyed a key US-supplied Patriot air defence system in what would be a costly blow to Ukraine.

The Kremlin said it struck the missile battery with a hypersonic Kinzhal missile during one of the most intense rocket barrages on the capital since the war broke out.

However, Ukraine claimed it had downed all six “unstoppable” Kinzhal missiles fired overnight, which would raise major doubts about Russia’s long-range missile threat.

The Russian claims came after a video was shared on social media that appeared to show an unidentified surface-to-air missile system firing more than 20 times in two minutes in Kyiv. Each missile costs about $4 million.

At the end of the video, there appeared to be an explosion on the ground, which pro-Russian social media accounts have claimed is the destruction of a Patriot missile system recently donated to Ukraine by the US. Ukraine said it had shot down six Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a superweapon Moscow had previously touted as impossible to shoot down.

The Daily Telegraph, London