The U.K. and the U.S. have condemned Russia’s use of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik ballistic missile in Ukraine, calling it a “dangerous and inexplicable escalation” at an emergency meeting called by the UN Security Council (UNSC).
Russia Friday claimed it fired the hypersonic missile at a critical target in Ukraine in response to what it described as an attempted drone strike on one of President Vladimir Putin’s residences, a claim refuted by Kyiv.
It was the second time that Russia used the intermediate-range Oreshnik, a missile which Putin boasted was impossible to intercept because of its reported velocity of more than 10 times the speed of sound.
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Ukraine and its European allies condemned the Russian missile strike, which they claimed was intended to intimidate the West at a time when European countries offered troops for a potential post-war reassurance force in Ukraine.
Tammy Bruce, the U.S.’s deputy ambassador to the U.N., said Russia’s use of the missile “constitutes another dangerous and inexplicable escalation of this war, even as the United States is urgently working with Kyiv, other partners and Moscow to end the war through a negotiated settlement”.
“We condemn Russia’s continuing and intensifying attacks on Ukraine’s energy facilities and other civilian infrastructure,” he added.
Acting British ambassador James Kariuki called the attack “reckless”, adding that “it threatens regional and international security and carries significant risk of escalation and miscalculation”. He continued: “President Putin claims to want peace, and yet his actions tell a different story.”
Kariuki warned that if “President Putin think this violence will deter Ukraine’s partners, he is wrong about that too”.
“We will continue to ensure that Ukraine gets the military and financial support it needs to defend itself. And we will increase pressure on Russia to de-escalate and engage in meaningful negotiations.”
Russia’s defence ministry Monday said the hypersonic missile struck the Lviv State Aviation Repair Plant in western Ukraine, which was disabled as a result of the attack.
“This enterprise carried out repairs and maintenance of Ukrainian armed forces aviation equipment, including F-16 and MiG-29 aircraft transferred by Western countries,” the ministry said. “The company also produced long and medium-range attack drones used to strike Russian civilian targets deep within Russian territory.”
Kyiv confirmed that the missile was fired on the Lviv region, close to the border with Poland, but did not say whether the plant was struck.
The Oreshnik – the name meaning Hazel Tree in Russian language – is a missile that Russia has fired only once before against Ukraine, in November 2024. At that time, it was equipped only with dummy warheads and therefore caused limited damage, Ukrainian sources said, in what was effectively a test.
Experts say the novel feature of the Oreshnik is that it can carry multiple warheads capable of simultaneously striking different targets, usually associated with longer-range intercontinental ballistic missiles.
The missile is based on the RS-26 Rubezh, which Russia had originally developed as an intercontinental missile.
A senior Russian military chief handed to a U.S. military attache on January 2 what he said was part of a Ukrainian drone containing data he said proved that the Ukrainian military had targeted a Russian presidential residence.
Moscow accused Kyiv of trying to strike a residence of Putin in Russia’s northern Novgorod region with 91 long-range attack drones. It said Russia would review its negotiating position in ongoing talks with the U.S. on ending the Ukraine war. Ukraine and Western countries have disputed Russia’s account of the alleged attempted strike.
