Ukrainian military accuses Russia of firing intercontinental missile for first time

Ukraine accused Russia this Thursday, November 20, of having fired an intercontinental missile against its territory, which would be a first use of this type of weapon in conflict in history and which, even without a nuclear charge, would constitute an escalation. unprecedented war and Russian-Western tensions.

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“An intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from the Russian region of Astrakhan”the Air Force said in a statement. “It’s the first time. We’ve never had this kind of missile before.”a source within this army told AFP. These types of missiles are designed to carry nuclear warheads and strike from thousands of kilometers away.

But the intercontinental missile did not carry any nuclear warhead, a source within the Ukrainian air force told AFP. “It’s obvious” that the missile did not carry a nuclear charge, given the limited extent of the damage, she added. According to kyiv, Russia attacked the Ukrainian city of Dnipro (center-east) with nine missiles including one intercontinental. The attack left two people injured and minor damage, according to regional authorities.

“I have nothing to say on this topic”

The Kremlin has refused to comment on Ukraine’s accusation that Moscow fired for the first time on its territory an intercontinental missile, a type of weapon designed as part of nuclear deterrence but which can be armed with a conventional load.

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“I have nothing to say on this topic”said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, questioned by media on this subject during a daily briefing.

He also said that Russia would “do maximum d’efforts » to avoid a nuclear war, after a revision of Russian doctrine which broadens the possibility of using atomic weapons, in the midst of tension between Moscow and the West over the conflict in Ukraine.

« We emphasized that, following our doctrine, Russia takes a responsible position in order to make maximum efforts not to allow such a conflict “, said the spokesperson.

Several Western embassies closed

The Russian Defense Ministry, for its part, announced Thursday that it had shot down “two British-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles” fired by Ukraine and which were targeting its territory, without specifying the place or time of this interception.

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British media announced on Wednesday that kyiv had used these long-range missiles for the first time after obtaining authorization from London.

Already on Tuesday, Ukraine used for the first time American ATACMS missiles, with a range of 300 km, against a military installation in the Russian region of Bryansk.
Some Western countries supplied long-range missiles to Ukraine but did not authorize their use on Russian territory.

On Wednesday, several Western embassies, including that of the United States, temporarily closed for the day due to the risk of a major Russian attack. The American embassy had warned of a “possible significant air attack” on Ukraine, without giving details.