LUGANSK, November 11. /TASS/. The attempt to obtain technical information about the Kinzhal missile, which was foiled by the Russian special services, points to a technological lag in the West, an act of pure desperation, military expert Andrey Marochko said on Telegram.

"This is an act of desperation on the part of Western countries, because it’s a long-known fact that they have lagged behind the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation for decades. Our supreme commander-in-chief has said this on numerous occasions, so the fact of technical espionage, as I can see it, was noted by our special competent authorities," he said, when asked about the attempted hijacking of a MIG-31 aircraft with a Kinzhal hypersonic missile.

According to him, it would take billions of dollars and decades of work for Western countries to develop similar technologies. "To facilitate the work of technical specialists who work on the defense capability of Western countries, of course, such actions are carried out. It is better to pay, as they believe, a couple of million dollars to save billions," the expert noted.

Marochko said that the foiling of this espionage attempt protects Russians.

"Western countries cannot be expected to have such developments of those products that we have in service any time soon. Consequently, they will think ten times rather than commit an act of aggression against the Russian Federation," he concluded.