July 7 (Reuters) – Russia announced on Sunday that it had struck two Patriot air defense launch systems in Ukraine, though Kyiv asserted that the targets were actually decoys meant to deplete Russia’s expensive missiles.

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According to a statement from Russia’s defense ministry, the attack occurred near the Black Sea port of Yuzhne, also destroying a radar station. The ministry said that Iskander-M ballistic missiles were used in the strike.

However, Ukraine’s air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk, in a Telegram post on Saturday evening, responded to social media videos of the attack, stating that Russia had hit Ukrainian decoy Patriot systems.

Reuters has been unable to independently verify the claims from either side.

Ukraine has previously showcased inexpensive decoys designed to mimic costly Western air defense and missile systems, which Moscow actively seeks to destroy. The Patriot system, which has been highly effective in the conflict and of which Ukraine possesses few units, remains a primary target for Russia.

Oleshchuk also mentioned that Russia had struck decoy planes in a missile attack on a Ukrainian military airfield on Wednesday.

“Thank you to all who help with quality decoy planes and air defense systems. The enemy now has fewer Iskanders, but we will bring up more decoys,” Oleshchuk added.

A video released by the Russian ministry on Telegram showed daylight explosions on uninhabited land near a coastline, zooming in to identify objects before the blasts.