Russia says it can shoot down missiles like North Korea's

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A Russian general said Thursday that the nation's military is capable of shooting down missiles like the one launched by North Korea over the weekend, news reports said. The S-300 missile systems, which are central to Russia's air defense forces, can shoot down both aircraft and ballistic missiles. "Air defense troops in the Far East have means capable of shooting down missiles like the one which was launched by North Korea," said Lt.-Gen. Vadim Volkovitsky, the chief of staff of the Russian air force, according to RIA Novosti and Interfax. North Korea claims it sent a satellite into space on Sunday. Volkovitsky said that the military monitored the launch but he declined to assess the purpose of Sunday's launch.