Russian President Vladimir Putin announced at a summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization in Kazakhstan on Thursday that a massive overnight attack on Ukraine was launched in retaliation for Kyiv’s firing of U.S.-supplied ATACMS ballistic missiles into Russian territory.
The Russian strike, the second this month targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, damaged facilities in nine regions, according to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry. The state grid operator Ukrenergo announced significant power cuts across the country as a result.
On November 19, Ukraine fired what Russia identified as ATACMS missiles into western Russia for the first time. Moscow responded two days later by launching the Oreshnik, a new intermediate-range missile, at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
Since then, Russia claims Ukraine has fired additional ATACMS missiles at its Kursk region on November 23 and 25, and has also struck Russia with British-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles. This escalation follows the United States and Britain’s decision to permit Kyiv to strike deep within Russian territory using these weapons.
President Putin stated at the summit that, from Moscow’s perspective, these actions signify the “direct involvement” of the West in an armed conflict with Russia.
Beyond Thursday’s retaliation, Putin indicated that future responses may include the use of the Oreshnik missile to target “decision-making centers” in Kyiv. “Of course, we will respond to the ongoing strikes on Russian territory with long-range Western-made missiles, as has already been said, including by possibly continuing to test the Oreshnik in combat conditions, as was done on November 21,” Putin said.
“At present, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff are selecting targets to hit on Ukrainian territory. These could be military facilities, defense and industrial enterprises, or decision-making centers in Kyiv,” he added.
So far, Russia has not struck Ukrainian government ministries, parliament, or the president’s office during the 33-month conflict. While Kyiv is heavily protected by air defenses, Putin claims that the Oreshnik missile, which was fired at a Ukrainian city for the first time last week, cannot be intercepted.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned Putin’s promotion of the Oreshnik missile, suggesting it is a tactic to disrupt efforts to end the conflict, particularly by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.
“He doesn’t seek an end to this war. Moreover, Putin wants to prevent others from ending the war,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. “He can go on wielding his Oreshnik only to thwart the efforts of President Trump which are sure to follow his inauguration. Putin wants to escalate the situation to such an extent so that President Trump’s attempts will fail. So that he cannot end the war.”
Zelenskyy also stated that he is communicating with Western leaders, including NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, to develop a response to “Russia’s attempt to make the situation more unbearable and drag out the war.”
(With input from Reuters)
Reference(s):
Russia says massive attack on Ukraine a response to ATACMS strikes
cgtn.com
