Russia uses hypersonic Oreshnik missile in Kyiv attack

Russia used a powerful hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile in an overnight missile and drone attack on Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday.

Russia's army later confirmed it had used the missile.

The EU's top diplomat Kaja Kallas accused Moscow of using "a political scare-tactic and reckless nuclear-brinkmanship."

She said EU foreign ministers meeting next week would address how to "dial up the international pressure on Russia."

What do we know about the attack?

Russia struck the city of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region with the missile, Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post. The target was not immediately clear.

It is the third time the weapon, which is capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads, has been used in Ukraine.

In the early hours of Sunday, Russia hit Kyiv with a massive strike of missiles and drones, killing at least four people and wounding dozens in the capital city and its surrounding region.

It came after Moscow threatened retaliation for strikes in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine.

Russia's combined attack included 600 strike drones and 90 air, sea and ground-launched missiles, according to Ukraine's Air Force.

Ukrainian air defenses destroyed and jammed 549 drones and 55 missiles. Around 19 missiles failed to reach targets, the Air Force said.

"The capital has come under a mass ballistic missile attack," Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, wrote on Telegram.

"There are currently reports of at least 4 locations affected by the attack: Shevchenkivsky, Dniprovsky and Podilsky districts. Fires and damage to residential buildings are preliminarily reported," Tkachenko said.

Falling debris also caused a fire on the premises of a school in ‌central Kyiv, Kyiv ‌Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.

Russia warns of retaliation

On Saturday, Ukrainian President ‌Zelenskyy had already warned of a potential Russian attack using the Oreshnik missile, citing intelligence from Ukraine, the US and Europe.

"We are seeing signs of preparation for a combined strike on Ukrainian territory, including Kyiv, involving various types of weaponry," including the Oreshnik, Zelenskyy said in a post on social media.

The warning came after Ukraine launched a drone barrage against the Russian-occupied east, which Moscow said hit a college dormitory and killed at least 18 people.

However, Ukraine has denied targeting civilians, saying it hit a Russian drone unit stationed in the Starobilsk area of the Luhansk region.

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko, Natalie Muller

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