Ukraine's air defenses intercept 80% of Russian cruise missiles, 90% of drones, defense minister says in meeting with allies

Prefer on Google by Volodymyr Ivanyshyn German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (2nd from L), NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (1st from L), British Defense Minister John Healey (1st from R), and Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov hold a joint press conference following the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting held in Berlin, Germany, on April 15, 2026. (Erbil Basay/Anadolu via Getty Images) Ukraine's air defenses intercept 80% of Russian cruise missiles and 90% of drones launched at the country, Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said April 15. "We strengthened our air defense — with a cruise missile interception rate of almost 80% and drone interception rising to 90%," he said. Russia regularly strikes Ukrainian cities and launched a brutal campaign of drone and missile attacks on energy infrastructure over the winter, leaving Ukrainians without heating in frigid temperatures. Fedorov spoke alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte , German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, and British Defense Minister John Healey following the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting. "On the battlefield, we are not only holding the line, but we are also increasing pressure. Russian losses reached record levels, exceeding their monthly mobilization," Fedorov said. Russia is now losing 254 soldiers for every square kilometer it occupies, and an average of 428 soldiers per square kilometer in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast , he noted. Ukraine's allies backed Fedorov, reemphasizing support for Ukraine, including a new pledge from the U.K. to provide Kyiv with over 120,000 drones by the year's end. Russian President Vladimir Putin would like "the world to believe that Ukrainians have no choice but to concede," but it is Ukraine conducting successful counterattacks, Healey said . "Russia is struggling on the battlefield. Winning is now a distant dream for Putin, and we even saw some media reports that he is understanding that his economy is in a bad shape," Rutte added. Despite the high cruise missile and drone interception rates, Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure remain deadly for Ukrainians. Russian attacks killed at least seven Ukrainians and injured 64 others on April 15, local authorities reported. On April 14, a Russian missile strike on the city of Dnipro killed five people and injured at least 27 others, authorities reported.