Russia launched a hypersonic Oreshnik missile toward western Ukraine overnight, striking close to the European Union’s border in an attack Kyiv described as a serious escalation and a direct threat to continental security that warrants a global response.
The missile struck Ukraine’s Lviv region, roughly 60 kilometres from the Polish border, marking only the second known use of the Oreshnik system since Moscow introduced it late last year. Ukrainian officials said the strike occurred just before midnight amid a broader wave of aerial assaults across the country.
Moscow claimed the launch was retaliation for what it described as a Ukrainian drone attack on one of President Vladimir Putin’s residences in northern Russia last month. Ukraine has categorically denied the allegation, calling it fabricated, while the United States has said no such attack took place.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha condemned the missile strike, warning that its proximity to NATO and EU territory represented a dangerous provocation.“Such a strike close to the EU and NATO border is a grave threat to security on the European continent and a test for the transatlantic community,” Sybiha said in a post on X. “It is absurd that Russia attempts to justify this attack with a fake ‘Putin residence attack’ that never happened. Putin is using an intermediate-range ballistic missile near NATO borders in response to his own hallucinations. This is a global threat and demands a global response.”The Oreshnik missile, which Russia says is impossible to intercept, is capable of carrying nuclear warheads, though there was no indication it did so in this instance. The weapon is designed to project power across Europe and has been widely viewed by Western analysts as a tool of strategic intimidation.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said the missile struck a drone manufacturing facility and energy infrastructure in western Ukraine. Ukrainian officials confirmed damage to infrastructure but did not specify targets. Local media reported that a large underground gas storage facility may have been hit.Germany strongly condemned the strike, accusing Moscow of deliberately escalating the conflict. Government spokesman Steffen Meyer said Russia was attempting to “instil fear” through symbolic acts of intimidation. “Russia has escalated the situation once again,” he said, adding that such tactics would not succeed.
The Oreshnik launch came as part of a broader overnight assault in which Russia fired 242 drones and 36 missiles at targets across Ukraine, according to Kyiv. Strikes on and around the capital killed at least four people and injured more than 20 others, authorities said.The attacks knocked out electricity to more than half a million homes in Kyiv, while water and heating supplies were disrupted amid freezing temperatures of around minus 10 degrees Celsius and heavy snowfall.
Ukrainian military officials said the Oreshnik missile was travelling at a speed of approximately 13,000 kilometres per hour. Russian war correspondents later released video footage purporting to show the moment of impact in western Ukraine, depicting multiple flashes across a snow-covered landscape followed by explosions. Reuters said it could not independently verify the authenticity of the footage.
Russia first used the Oreshnik missile in November 2024, when it claimed to have struck a Ukrainian military factory. Ukrainian sources at the time said the missile carried dummy warheads and caused limited damage.
The escalation comes as Ukrainian and U.S. envoys, along with representatives from allied nations, meet in Paris this week to resolve remaining differences in a peace framework Washington hopes to finalise with Kyiv before presenting it to Moscow.