Ukraine accused Russia on Thursday, November 21, of having, for the first time, fired an intercontinental missile on its territory, using this vector of its nuclear deterrence without an atomic charge, in the midst of a new Russian-Western escalation around the Ukrainian conflict. .
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The Russian army has so far remained silent, as has the Kremlin, following kyiv’s accusations of having, for the first time, fired an intercontinental missile on its territory. “ I have nothing to say on this topicreplied the spokesperson for the Russian presidency, Dmitri Peskov, questioned by the media on this subject during a daily briefing.
During a briefing, Russian diplomatic spokesperson Maria Zakharova was interrupted by a phone call. A voice was heard on the line asking him to “ do not comment » the strike « ballistic missiles » about the Pivdenmach satellite manufacturing plant, located in the center of Dnipro.
“ An intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from the Russian region of Astrakhan “, in the south of the country, the Ukrainian Air Force said in a statement. “ It’s the first time. We’ve never had this kind of missiles before “, a source within this army told AFP.
New escalation of the conflict
These missiles are designed to carry nuclear warheads and strike from thousands of kilometers away. This usage, if confirmed, marks a new escalation, while the Russia said he was preparing a response “ appropriate » to Ukraine’s use of Western missiles in Russian territory, which Moscow had described as a red line. He is ” obvious » that the missile used on Thursday November 21 did not carry a nuclear charge, specified the AFP source within the Ukrainian air force.
“ We are of course following reports that Russia has used an intercontinental ballistic missile against one or more targets in Ukraine. (…) It is obvious that such an attack would mark a new escalation on the part of [Vladimir] Poutine », Reacted Peter Stano, a spokesperson for the European Commission.
The strike targeted the town of Dnipro, in the east-central part of theUkraineaccording to the Air Force. The extent of the damage was not immediately clear. Two people were injured by Russian strikes in Dnipro on Thursday, according to regional governor Serguii Lyssak, who did not, however, specify the type of weapons used in this attack.
Fifteen other people were injured in another attack in Kryvyi Rig, a town about 100 kilometers southwest of Dnipro, according to the governor.
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