Kyiv Accuses Russia of Using Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles in Attack on Ukraine

In the early hours of Thursday, December 1, Russia targeted at least two regions in Ukraine with heavy missile strikes. These attacks occurred while all points in Ukraine were on alert for several hours. The Ukrainian Air Force stated in a Telegram message: "In this attack, Russian forces targeted critical facilities and infrastructure in the city of Dnipro with various missiles, including an intercontinental ballistic missile launched from the Astrakhan region of the Russian Federation." However, an unnamed American official stated on Thursday that the Russian missile attack on Dnipro was conducted with a test medium-range ballistic missile, not an intercontinental ballistic missile, and this action would not change the dynamics of the war. The official emphasized that Russia likely possesses only a small number of these test missiles and that this attack was primarily intended to intimidate Ukraine and its supporters. This official added that the United States had previously warned Ukraine and its allies about the potential use of this weapon by Russia. In the Thursday attack on Dnipro, one infrastructure facility was targeted, and two civilians were injured. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Moscow of testing its weapons in Ukraine, describing the attack as characteristic of an intercontinental ballistic missile strike. Tensions between Moscow and Ukraine's Western supporters have recently escalated with Ukraine's attacks on Russian territory using Western weapons. The Kremlin has yet to confirm or deny the use of intercontinental ballistic missiles. The heavy missile attack by Russia came just days after Ukraine used British Storm Shadow missiles and American-made ATACMS tactical missiles for the first time to strike targets inside Russian territory; an action that received President Biden's approval after a long wait, marking the thousandth day of the war. It has been reported that Ukraine, after receiving U.S. authorization, targeted a military complex in the Bryansk region of Russia with an ATACMS tactical missile. However, neither the White House has officially confirmed the authorization nor has Ukraine explicitly acknowledged the use of this missile. The Kremlin had previously warned that Ukraine's use of Western long-range missiles against Russia would significantly escalate the crisis. The primary target of Russia's heavy attack on December 1 was the Dnipropetrovsk region, the most important industrial area of Ukraine, and the city of Dnipro, the center of this region in southeastern Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, in addition to the intercontinental ballistic missile, Russia also used a Kinzhal hypersonic missile and seven Kh-101 air-to-ground cruise missiles in the attack on Dnipro. Ukraine claims to have intercepted and shot down six out of seven Russian cruise missiles. Serhiy Lysak, the governor of Dnipropetrovsk, confirmed the severity of the recent Russian attack, reporting on Telegram that an industrial center in Dnipro was targeted. Explosions were also reported in Kremenchuk in the central Poltava region. It seems that Russia's change in tactics and the use of a large number of modern and sophisticated missiles instead of previous drone attacks is a response to Ukraine's initiation of using Western long-range missiles against targets within the territory of the Russian Federation. On the last day of Aban, Russian military bloggers and a Reuters source reported Ukraine's use of 12 British-French Storm Shadow missiles against targets in the Kursk region of Russia. A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer did not confirm this matter; however, the UK had previously granted Kyiv permission to use these missiles with an operational range of 250 kilometers within Ukraine's borders. On the morning of December 1, Moscow announced that a new U.S. missile base established less than 10 days ago in the city of Redzikowo, Poland, on the Baltic Sea as part of the NATO missile shield program would "seriously increase the risk of nuclear conflict." Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, emphasized that "Moscow views the establishment of this base as a provocative action aligned with a series of severely destabilizing actions by the U.S. and its NATO partners." Ms. Zakharova stressed that "the construction of this base will undermine strategic stability and consequently increase the level of nuclear risk." Poland denied Moscow's claims, emphasizing that this base does not host nuclear missiles. Pavel Wawrzyński, Ms. Zakharova's Polish counterpart, stated that the purpose of this base is defensive, not offensive.