Ukraine accuses Russia of launching intercontinental ballistic missiles | War news between Russia and Ukraine

President Vladimir Putin says Russia tested a hypersonic medium-range missile in an attack on Ukraine.

Ukraine has accused Russia of firing a new type of missile at the city of Dnipro as Moscow said it tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile in an attack on Ukraine, amid soaring tensions in the more than two-year war.

Kiev said on Thursday that Russia had launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) along with a barrage of rockets at the city in central Ukraine. Local authorities said the attack hit an infrastructure facility and wounded two civilians.

In a televised speech, President Vladimir Putin said Russia had tested a hypersonic medium-range missile in an attack on Ukraine in response to aggressive actions by NATO countries.

A US official was quoted by the Reuters news agency as saying that Russia did not launch an ICBM but instead launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile, according to an assessment based on its initial analysis.

“Today there was a new Russian missile. All the characteristics – speed, altitude – are (of an) intercontinental ballistic (missile),” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video statement.

He said experts were examining the evidence of the attack and accused Moscow of “using Ukraine as a testing ground”.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said the strike “proves that Russia is not seeking peace”.

“On the contrary, it is doing everything to expand the war,” he added.

Asked about the attack, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia is working to avoid a nuclear conflict.

“We have emphasized in connection with our doctrine that Russia takes a responsible position to make maximum efforts not to allow such a conflict,” Peskov said.

Attack in Russia

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has escalated in recent days after the United States authorized Ukraine to use long-range weapons to attack targets in Russia, a decision Ukraine had sought for months.

On Tuesday, Ukraine reportedly fired US-made Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) missiles at targets in Russia for the first time.

Putin on Tuesday lowered the threshold for a nuclear attack in response to a wider range of conventional attacks.

On Wednesday, British media reported that Ukraine fired long-range British Storm Shadow cruise missiles at targets in Russia. The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the use of the missiles.

Separately, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described the opening of a new US missile defense base in Poland as a “provocative step in a series of deeply destabilizing actions by the Americans and their allies”.

“This leads to the undermining of strategic stability, increased strategic risks and, as a result, to an increase in the overall level of nuclear danger,” she said.

Poland rejected the idea that the base would be used for offensive purposes.

The escalation comes as Moscow’s forces have moved deeper into the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. Russia’s military announced Thursday that its forces had captured a village near Kurakhove, closing in on the town after months of steady advances.

Ukraine’s defensive lines are also buckling under Russian pressure across the front line.