British intelligence assesses potential of Russia’s Kinzhal missiles over Black Sea

Intelligence analysts believe that the Kinzhal missiles that the jets will carry are actually at the stage of operational testing, adding that their efficiency against targets in Ukraine has been low so far, reads rhe report posted on X (formerly Twitter), Ukrinform saw.

As noted, on October 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that MiG-31 interceptors carrying Kh-47M2 Kinzhal ballistic missiles, will patrol the eastern part of the Black Sea on the permanent basis.

According to British intelligence, Putin issued the relevant order after the U.S. increased its naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean to hold those vessels at risk.

"This announcement is in line with typical Russian rhetoric aimed at its domestic audience, calling the West aggressors whilst framing Russian activity as necessary for protection of the state," the report reads.

British intelligence believes Putin's specific mention of the Kinzhal missile and its capabilities was almost certainly for "strategic messaging purposes," to demonstrate that Russia remains capable of producing and operating newly developed weapons, despite the ongoing war against Ukraine.

At the same time, the Kinzhal effectively remains in operational testing, with its performance in Ukraine to date being poor.

"It remains highly capable on paper, able to fly at hypersonic speeds and evade modern air defence systems, although there almost certainly needs to be significant improvement in how Russia uses it to achieve this potential," the report says.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, referring to the spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, Yuriy Ihnat, Russia currently uses nearly 40 airfields for air attacks on Ukraine, so it is not a given that precisely the Belbek airfield in Crimea will host MiG-31s.