Launchers from an air defense system have been installed near the main Moscow office of the Innopraktika foundation. That was reported by Radio Svoboda, citing an analysis of satellite imagery.
The foundation’s office, headed by Katerina Tikhonova, is located a few hundred meters from the Moscow State University building on Sparrow Hills. According to the outlet, an S-400 surface-to-air missile system and a universal mobile tower, the 40V6MR, appeared there in May.
Radio Svoboda writes that the site likely became part of a new air defense ring being formed around central Moscow. The outlet also says additional new installations were spotted in Izmailovsky and Moskvoretsky parks, in Losiny Ostrov park, and on the experimental fields of the Timiryazev Academy.
In the outlet’s assessment, placing the S-400 on Sparrow Hills also has a practical rationale: the location sits on naturally elevated ground, allowing radar systems to detect targets earlier.
In April, Radio Svoboda reported that at least 27 active air defense installations were positioned around Vladimir Putin’s residence in Valdai.
Against this backdrop, Moscow has been facing more frequent Ukrainian drone attacks in recent weeks. The largest raid since the start of the war reportedly took place on June 18, when drones triggered a fire at the Moscow Oil Refinery, as well as at the Sadovod market and the Mega Belaya Dacha shopping complex.