Russia launched a new non-nuclear ballistic missile with medium range on Ukraine\u2019s Dnipro region on Thursday, Russia\u2019s President Vladimir Putin said in a televised statement, marking another significant escalation in the 1,000-day-old war. <\/p>\n
According to US and Western officials, the ballistic missile carried multiple warheads, which may be the first time such a weapon has been used in war. <\/p>\n
At least three people were injured in the attack, the head of the Dnipro\u2019s military administration had said earlier. A number of buildings were also damaged. <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what we know. <\/p>\n
Russian President Vladimir Putin said a Russian strike in Ukraine was carried out by a new non-nuclear ballistic missile, which has a medium range. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn response to the use of American and British long-range weapons, on November 21 of this year the Russian armed forces launched a combined strike on one of the facilities of the Ukrainian defense industry,\u201d Putin said in a televised statement on Thursday. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn combat conditions, one of the newest Russian medium-range missile systems was also tested,\u201d Putin said, apparently referring to the strike on Dnipro. \u201cIn this case, with a ballistic missile in non-nuclear hypersonic equipment. Our missilemen called it \u2018Oreshnik.\u2019 The tests were successful. The launch goal was achieved.\u201d <\/p>\n
A medium-range missile can travel between 1,000 kilometers and 3,000 kilometers (620 miles to 1,860 miles), according to the Center for Arms Control and Anti-Proliferation. <\/p>\n
Putin also said that Moscow considers itself entitled to use weapons against military targets belonging to countries that allow their weapons to be used against Russia. He said that Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked targets in Russia\u2019s Bryansk region with six US-made ATACMS missiles on Tuesday and later fired British\/French Storm Shadow systems on the Kursk region. <\/p>\n
\u201cFrom that moment, as we have repeatedly emphasized earlier, the regionally provoked conflict in Ukraine took on elements of a global nature,\u201d Putin said, adding that \u201cusing such weapons without the direct involvement of military specialists from the countries that produce these weapons is impossible.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cWe consider ourselves entitled to use our weapons against the military objects of those countries that allow their weapons to be used against our objects, and in the event of an escalation of aggressive actions, we will respond just as decisively and in kind,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia\u2019s use of the new missile is \u201ca clear and severe escalation in the scale and brutality of this war.\u201d <\/p>\n
In a post on X on Thursday, Zelensky accused Russia of \u201ca cynical violation of the UN Charter\u201d and taking a \u201csecond step toward escalation\u201d of the conflict, adding that the first escalatory step was involving North Korean troops in the war. <\/p>\n
The Ukrainian leader also emphasized Kyiv\u2019s right to strike Russia with long-range weapons \u201cunder international law,\u201d adding that Putin is \u201ctesting\u201d Kyiv\u2019s partners with his actions and called on world leaders to put pressure on Moscow. <\/p>\n
\u201cA lack of tough reactions to Russia\u2019s actions sends a message that such behavior is acceptable,\u201d he said. \u201cRussia must be forced into real peace, which can only be achieved through strength.\u201d <\/p>\n
Ukraine\u2019s foreign ministry echoed Zelensky\u2019s comments, emphasizing Kyiv\u2019s right to strike Russia with long-range weapons. <\/p>\n
\u201cUkraine has used long-range capabilities against targets in its occupied territories many times, but Putin started to fuss only when targets in Russia were hit. So Putin knows the difference between the actual Russian territory and the territory he tries to steal from Ukraine,\u201d Ukraine\u2019s foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said in a Thursday post on \u2018X.\u2019 <\/p>\n
Ukraine\u2019s air force earlier accused Russia of launching an intercontinental ballistic missile at Dnipro at around 5 a.m. local time, from the Astrakhan region of southern Russia, without offering further detail. However, two Western officials disputed Ukraine\u2019s assessment, saying that although the missile launched by Russia was likely a ballistic missile, it was not an intercontinental one. <\/p>\n
Ukraine\u2019s military also said that an X-47M2 Kinzhal ballistic missile was launched alongside seven cruise missiles in the attack, adding that all but one of the cruise missiles were shot down. \u201cThe other missiles didn\u2019t cause significant consequences,\u201d the military said. <\/p>\n
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky framed the strike was evidence that Putin is \u201cso afraid, he is already using new missiles.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cToday, our crazy neighbor has once again shown who he really is and how he despises dignity, freedom, and human life in general,\u201d Zelensky said in a video posted to Telegram before Putin\u2019s televised address. <\/p>\n
The missile fired at Dnipro carried multiple warheads, according to two US officials and one Western official, in what may be the first time such a weapon has been used in war. <\/p>\n
The weapon, known as a Multiple Independently-targetable Reentry Vehicle (MIRV), carries a series of warheads that can each target a specific location, allowing one ballistic missile to launch a larger attack. <\/p>\n
MIRVs were developed during the Cold War to permit the delivery of multiple nuclear warheads with a single launch. The Minuteman III, which is the US intercontinental ballistic missile, is armed with MIRVs. The Russian missile attack on Dnipro was not armed with nuclear warheads, but it used a weapon designed for nuclear delivery to instead launch conventional weapons. <\/p>\n
Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said this was the first use of the experimental intermediate-range ballistic missile \u201cbased on\u201d Russia\u2019s RS-26 Rubezh missile model, though Singh declined to identify the specific type of missile or its capabilities. <\/p>\n
Tom Karako, the director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), says it\u2019s likely the first time a MIRV has been used in combat. <\/p>\n
The use of this type of missile armed with conventional warheads is an escalation of Russia\u2019s nuclear saber-rattling, Karako said, which includes the recent update of its nuclear doctrine. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a big rocket with payload capability – presumably MIRVs – and has the baggage associated with it of nuclear delivery vehicles,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Hans Kristensen, the director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, said the launch was significant. \u201cTo my knowledge, yes, it\u2019s the first time MIRV has been used in combat,\u201d Kristensen said. <\/p>\n
The United Nations Secretary General\u2019s spokesperson warned on Thursday that Russia\u2019s use of a new, medium-range ballistic missile is \u201cyet another concerning and worrying development.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cAll of this [is] going in the wrong direction. What we want to see is for all parties to take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation,\u201d Stephane Dujarric said in a regular briefing on Thursday, adding that \u201cwhat we want to see is an end to this conflict in line with General Assembly resolutions, international law, and territorial integrity.\u201d <\/p>\n
Putin\u2019s announcement comes during a tense week in the conflict, which is now more than 1,000 days old. <\/p>\n
This week, both US and British\/French-made missiles have been fired into Russia by Ukraine, after US President Joe Biden gave Ukraine permission to use longer-range American missiles across the border. <\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Russia\u2019s Defense Ministry and two US officials said Ukraine had fired the US-made ATACMS into Russia for the first time. <\/p>\n
Russia\u2019s Defense Ministry also said its air defenses shot down two British\/French-made Storm Shadow missiles, acknowledging Ukraine\u2019s use of the longer-range weapons. <\/p>\n
In turn, Putin updated Russia\u2019s nuclear doctrine, with the Kremlin saying the revised military doctrine would in theory lower the bar for first use of nuclear weapons. <\/p>\n
Ukraine uses a Patriot missile defense system supplied by the US and Germany to intercept incoming ballistic missile warheads, according to the Missile Threat Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. <\/p>\n
The Patriot system is designed to engage incoming warheads, either with an exploding warhead of its own, or with kinetic interceptors \u2013 so-called \u201chit-to-kill\u201d technology, which destroys the incoming warhead by striking it directly. <\/p>\n
Patriot interceptors have a vertical range of about 20 kilometers (12 miles) and defend an area of about 15 to 20 kilometers around the battery, according to the Congressional Research Service. <\/p>\n
But Ukraine has only a limited number of Patriots and batteries. Some cities, like the capital Kyiv, enjoy greater protection than others. <\/p>\n
The Dnipropetrovsk region has been a frequent target of Russian bombardment in recent months. <\/p>\n
It borders the partially occupied Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions and has become a hub for people who have fled areas that are now under Russian control. <\/p>\n
The region is now home to more than 400,000 internally displaced people. <\/strong>Dnipro, the fourth-largest city in Ukraine, is an important center of life in the eastern part of the country. <\/p>\n It is relatively close to the front lines, yet still fairly well protected by air defenses. That, plus its transportation infrastructure links to the rest of the country, makes the city a key hub in Ukraine\u2019s war effort. <\/p>\n The head of Ukraine\u2019s Dnipropetrovsk military administration said Russia was \u201cmassively attacking\u201d the region on Thursday morning. <\/p>\n Three people were injured after houses were damaged, and a rehabilitation center for people with disabilities was also impacted in the attack, Serhiy Lysak said on Telegram. <\/p>\n There were two fires in Dnipro and \u201cdamage to an industrial enterprise,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n This story has been updated with additional developments.<\/em> <\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Russia launched a new non-nuclear ballistic missile with medium range on Ukraine\u2019s Dnipro region on Thursday, Russia\u2019s President Vladimir Putin said in a televised statement, marking another significant escalation in the 1,000-day-old war. According to US and Western officials, the ballistic missile carried multiple warheads, which may be the first time such a weapon has <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10160,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10159","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10159"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10159\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10160"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} How much damage did the attack cause?<\/h2>\n