Moscow on Thursday launched an intercontinental ballistic missile at Ukraine for the first time, Kyiv said, marking the latest escalation of the conflict since Ukraine fired Western-supplied long-range missiles on Russia.
The Ukrainian air force said in a statement that Russian forces in the morning had launched several types of missiles at the central city of Dnipro, targeting critical infrastructure.
“In particular, an intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from the Astrakhan region of the Russian Federation,” the statement said.
A source in the Ukrainian air force confirmed to AFP that it was the first time since the Kremlin launched its invasion that its forces had deployed the weapon.
The source added it was “obvious” that the missile, which is designed to carry both conventional and nuclear warheads, did not carry a nuclear charge.
Asked whether Moscow fired the missile, which can hit targets thousands of kilometres away, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had “nothing to say on this topic.”
Air defence units downed six missiles, the air force said, without elaborating on whether the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) had been downed.
The head of the wider region where the city of Dnipro is located said the Russian aerial bombardment had damaged a rehabilitation centre and several homes, as well as an industrial enterprise.
“Two people were wounded -- a 57-year-old man was treated on the scene and a 42-year-old woman was hospitalised,” the official, Sergiy Lysak.
Russia and Ukraine have escalated their use of deadly long-range missiles over recent days since the United States gave permission to use its ATACMS against military targets inside Russia -- a long-standing Ukrainian request.
British media meanwhile reported on Wednesday that Kyiv had launched UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles at targets in Russia after being given the green light from London.
The defence ministry in Moscow said its air defence systems had downed two Storm Shadows, without saying whether they were downed on Russian territory or in occupied Ukraine.
Russia said Thursday its air defences had shot down two British-made Storm Shadow missiles, a day after British media reported Ukraine had fired the weapons into Russia for the first time.
“Air defence forces shot down two British-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles,” the Russian defence ministry said in a daily briefing.
The Kremlin said Thursday it was making “maximum effort” to avoid a nuclear conflict, following Moscow’s nuclear threats after Washington allowed Kyiv to use its long-range missiles on Russian targets.
“We have stressed in the context of our (nuclear) doctrine that Russia is taking a responsible position to make maximum effort not to allow such a conflict,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Meanwhile, Russia said on Thursday it had captured another east Ukrainian village close to Kurakhove, closing in on the town after months of steady advances.
Moscow’s defence ministry said Russian forces took the small village of Dalne, five kilometres (three miles) south of Kurakhove.
