How many missiles are left in Russia's arsenal?
ABCAs Russia bombarded Ukraine this week, military observers were left wondering about how many and what types of rockets and missiles Russia still has in its arsenal. Some analysts say Russia could be running down its stockpiles of long-range precision weapons as the nearly eight-month-old war drags on and sanctions hit its economy, forcing it to resort to less-accurate ones. When the Russian military unleashed its missile attacks across Ukraine starting on Monday, it drew on the entire scope of its long-range precision weapons: the Kh-55 and Kh-101 cruise missiles fired by strategic bombers, the sea-launched Kalibr cruise missiles and the ground-launched Iskander missiles. However, two officials said US government analysts had noted with interest that Russia had used cruise missiles, and not the less-expensive, shorter-range artillery or rockets, in the aftermath of the Kerch Bridge blast. That choice, the officials said, could indicate that Russia is running low on cheaper, reliable, mid-range weapons and is having trouble replenishing its stockpiles due to sanctions and supply chain disruptions.