Russia fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) targeting the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, Kyiv’s air force said on Thursday in what would be the first time such a powerful nuclear-capable weapon was used in the over 1,000-day war.
The reported launch, if confirmed, would add to the escalating tensions in the war as Russia flexes its nuclear capabilities, just days after warning of retaliation as Ukraine fired US and British missiles deep inside its territories.
Moscow had said that Ukraine’s use of the ATACMS, the longest-range missiles Washington has supplied, was a clear sign that the West wanted to escalate the conflict.
News agency Reuters quoted a source-based report in Ukrainska Pravda, a Kyiv-based media outlet, to say that Russia fired its RS-26 Rubezh missile, with a range of 5,800 kilometres, deep inside Ukrainian territory. However, the missile was not carrying any nuclear warhead.
The RS-26 was first successfully tested in 2012 and is estimated to be 12 metres long, with a weight of 36 tons, according to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy also confirmed the use of an ICBM by Russia and said that experts were investigating to identify the type of missile. In addition to the RS-26 missile, the Russian forces also fired a Kinzhal hypersonic missile and seven Kh-101 cruise missiles, six of which were shot down, Reuters said, citing the Ukrainian Air Force.
The Russian missile attack targeted enterprises and critical infrastructure in Ukraine’s Dnipro, the Ukrainian Air Force said, adding that two people were also injured in the attack. Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, did not immediately comment on the Ukrainian Air Force statement.
ICBMs are strategic weapons designed to deliver nuclear warheads and are an important part of Russia’s nuclear deterrent. Speaking on the launch of the ICBM, an official of the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDR) called it “unprecedented”.
- “If true this will be totally unprecedented and the first actual military use of ICBM. Not that it makes a lot of sense given their price and precision,” Andrey Baklitskiy of the UNIDR said in a post on X.