Putin confirms use of hypersonic missile in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday afternoon confirmed that Russian forces had used a new intermediate range hypersonic missile with a non-nuclear payload against Ukrainian forces. The missile struck a Ukrainian industrial plant in Ukraine’s Dnipro region, Putin said in the recorded remarks.

Ukrainian firefighters around damage left by a Russian strike Associated Press / Photo by Ukrainian Emergency Service

Initial post, 11 a.m.:

Russia launches ballistic missile at Ukraine infrastructure

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday said that Russian forces appeared to have launched an intercontinental ballistic missile at his country. Ukrainian authorities are still investigating the matter to determine whether it was indeed an ICBM, but the missile’s speed and altitude suggested that it was, Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian Air Force described it as an ICBM and said it struck the central Ukraine city of Dnipro, according to a translation of a social media statement. The missile in question was part of a larger air attack that targeted businesses and critical infrastructure, according to the statement.

What does Russia have to say about this? Russia’s Ministry of Defense on Thursday did not acknowledge the claim that it had used an ICBM against Ukraine. Rather, it said only that its drones, missiles, and artillery units engaged targets in nearly 150 locations across Ukraine.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about how the Kremlin claimed that Ukrainian forces launched U.S.-supplied long-range ballistic missiles into Russia.