Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha (left) with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte
Moscow’s use of the Oreshnik hypersonic missile constitutes “a serious threat” to European security, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister said.
Moscow announced this Friday that its armed forces launched a “massive attack” against Ukraine overnight, including a nuclear-capable missile.
The attack, with an “unstoppable” Oreshnik ballistic missile, was described as a retaliation by an alleged to a residence belonging to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Oreshnik hit the Lviv region, close to the eastern border of the EU and NATO, the Ukrainian foreign minister wrote, Andrii Sybihain a no X, which highlighted that the attack represents “a serious threat security on the European continent”.
This is only the second known time that Moscow uses the Oreshnik hypersonic missile, which is capable of carrying nuclear weaponsafter in November 2024 it was used for the first time against the Ukrainian region of Dnipro.
The attack on the Lviv region was part of a wider Russian offensive throughout Ukraine, notes the .
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the scale and timing of the attack underscored the Moscow’s intention to maximize damage to the civilian population. According to Zelenskyy, Russia mainly targeted energy facilities and civil infrastructure.
“The attack occurred precisely when there was a cold snap significant — directed exactly against the normal life of ordinary people“, Zelenskyy no X.
“A clear reaction from the world is neededespecially from the United States, whose signals Russia truly listens to,” said Zelenskyy. “Russia has to feel consequences whenever it again focus on murders and the destruction of infrastructure.”
“It is absurd that Russia tries to justify this attack with a fake ‘attack to Putin’s residence’ that never happened“, added Andrii Sybiha in his publication in X. “This is further proof that Moscow does not need real reasons to its terror and war“.
In addition to the Oreshnik missile, the Russian attack included another 13 ballistic missiles22 cruise missiles and 242 drones, said Zelenskyy, who added that a Qatar Embassy building was damaged by a Russian drone.
Ukraine’s call for a strong international response to the latest Russian aggression comes as Kiev continues to discuss efforts to end the nearly four-year war with European and North American allies.
Earlier this week, an agreement was reached on the deployment of a multinational force in Ukraine in the event of a peace agreement with Russia.
Ukraine’s Western Air Command said in a Facebook post that the intermediate-range Oreshnik missile that struck Lviv was traveling at almost 13,000 kilometers per hourwith reports on social media indicating that the attack occurred just minutes after the air raid sirens sounded.
The Lviv regional military administration said experts carried out on-site tests and laboratory analyzes after the attack. “THE radiation level it is within normal limits,” they said, adding that no harmful substances were detected in the air.
Sybiha announced that Ukraine will request an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council in response to the attack.
“A launch of this type close to the borders of the EU and NATO is a serious threat to security on the European continent and a test for the transatlantic community,” wrote Sybiha. “We demand a decisive response to Russia’s reckless actions.”
In late December, Moscow placed Oreshnik missiles stationed in Belarus on “combat duty.” The weapons had been requested by the Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenkowho cited concerns about the presence of Polish and Lithuanian troops near his country’s western border.
Putin said a year earlier that Moscow planned to mass-produce powerful Oreshnik missiles in order to “protect Russia’s security and our allies.”
