Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Thursday's ballistic missile attack on Ukraine was the debut of a new “unstoppable” weapon and blamed the West for turning the invasion of Ukraine into a global war.
Ukraine on Thursday morning reported what it claimed was an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) attack on central Dnipropetrovsk, sparking global concern over what could be the first true use of an ICBM in history. exploded in anger. But Western governments and intelligence agencies were apparently reluctant to publicly acknowledge this claim, Russia itself refused to comment, and eventually even Ukraine itself questioned its own claims.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has given his own version of events, saying that the attack was not an intercontinental ballistic missile (a weapon with a range of thousands of miles that flies into space and falls to Earth), but that it was an attack never seen before. He said it was caused by nuclear weapons. Intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM). In a televised address on Thursday night, President Putin identified this type as the “Oleshnik” (“Hazel”) type and insisted that it would be completely immune to Western countermeasures.
Separately, Putin's ally and former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now frequently used as the Kremlin's attack dog in making creepy nuclear threats, called the new missile “hypersonic” and threatened to attack it. He released a video called a video.
Given the importance of propaganda during wartime, and the fact that Putin's teleconferences are not only intended to inform foreign observers, but also to boost domestic consumption and Russian morale, it is difficult to take these claims at face value. It's difficult to receive. Russia has made bold claims about new missile systems in the past, particularly regarding their “hypersonic” speed.
The Kinzhal missile was so fast and maneuverable that it was said to be impossible to shoot down, but the manufacturer of the US Patriot missile shield system probably won the order after shooting down a large number of missiles in the air. seems to have increased steadily. Ukraine last year.
Nevertheless, President Putin was very bullish about the invincibility of the Oleshnik missile and said he would even give advance public warning of future launches, providing a somewhat ironic reassurance to civilians. According to Kremlin Media, the Russian president said in a televised speech on Thursday night: “Out of humanitarian concerns, we are going to do this openly, without fear of any countermeasures from our adversaries, that we will receive this information…Why are we not receiving any information?”Concerns ? This is because there is currently no countermeasure against this weapon.
Under a memorandum of understanding signed in 2000 with the United States to reduce the possibility that tests and military exercises could be misinterpreted as surprise attacks, Russia has a third-party system in advance for the launch of IRBMs, as in the case of intercontinental ballistic missiles. There is no obligation to notify the person.
The term hypersonic itself is somewhat problematic. A very large subject in the zeitgeist in military thought and technology, the theoretical concept of a hypersonic missile is one that can rapidly maneuver to evade enemy fire at extremely high speeds, more than five times the speed of sound. Many missiles achieve such speeds, but what seems to be essentially unproven is evasive action with speed factors. Nevertheless, Russia claims, among other things, that Oleshnik was flying at Mach 10, or 7,600 miles per hour.
In addition to discussing the alleged weapon itself, Putin also spoke about his alleged motives and criticized Western countries for helping to defend Ukraine against Ukrainian aggression. In this regard, he stated very clearly that the Dnipro attack was “in response to the use of American and British long-range weapons.”
He said the test of the new Oleshnik missile against a real target, a Ukrainian city, was “a response to NATO's aggressive actions against Russia.”
By supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles used in attacks on Russian soil for the first time this week, President Putin said that “the conflict in Ukraine caused by the West has acquired a global element.” These statements do not reflect anything about Russia's responsibility in the conflict, but they nevertheless clearly emphasize the Kremlin's attitude that it is involved in what Western countries consider its own private war. did.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who had earlier in the day called Russia an “insane neighbor” for launching a ballistic missile into his country's city, was quick to react to Putin's speech. He said Russia had once again “escalated and widened” the war with the latest attack, comparing its scale to Russia sending North Korean soldiers to fight Ukraine.
President Zelenskiy rejected Russia's complaints about Ukraine's missile attacks on its territory, saying it was the same damage Russia was already inflicting on Ukraine every day, no more, no less. “President Putin is lying when he claims that Ukraine's use of long-range weapons is somehow a new step for us. This is not the first time our country has used such weapons,” he said. , we have every right to do so under international law. Our right to self-defense is the same as the right of any other nation.
“And when Russian missiles attack our cities, when Iran's Shahed attacks Ukraine every night, when North Korean detachments deploy to our borders, Putin will only prolong the war. Instead, they are spitting in the faces of people around the world who are at war. I sincerely hope that peace will return. ”
