“Skhemy” reporters (“Radio Liberty”) found official evidence of what was clear a year ago – Russia is shelling Ukraine with Kh-55 cruise missiles, which were transferred to Moscow as part of an agreement between the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers and the Russian government in 1999 in exchange for repayment debts for gas. It is possible that the missiles are launched even from the same Tu-160 or Tu-95MS bombers that Ukraine gave up under the same agreement.

Journalists received the text of the agreement and the list of numbers of the transferred missiles and compared them with the numbers of the X-55s that Russian terrorists are using to attack Ukraine.

“Skhemy” discovered at least a dozen missiles from the list that the Russian Federation launched over Ukrainian cities – some of them were shot down by the air defense forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, some hit residential buildings, unfortunately with civilian casualties.

According to the agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine headed by Valery Pustovoytenko (the president of Ukraine who approved this agreement is Leonid Kuchma) and the government of the Russian Federation under the leadership of Vladimir Putin (at that time the head of the government of the Russian Federation), signed in Yalta in October 1999, Ukraine transferred to Russia eight Tu-160 heavy bombers, three Tu-95MS, as well as 575 Kh-55 cruise missiles. Instead, Russia compensated Ukraine for the debt for Russian gas in the amount of 275 million hryvnias.

At the time of gaining independence, Ukraine had 1,612 Kh-55 cruise missiles and more than 40 carriers of such weapons – 19 Tu-160 and 25 Tu-95MS. Most of this arsenal was destroyed as part of the Nunn-Lugar Joint Threat Reduction Program, a US Department of Defense initiative for Ukraine and the CIS countries. But, in addition to those loyal to Russia, in 2001, 12 more Kh-55 missiles were exported… to Iran, and 6 more missiles to China. Later, Iran created its own Soumar cruise missile based on the X-55.