On Thursday, November 21, 2024, Russia fired an intercontinental ballistic rocket (ICBM) from the Astrakhan region, directing it towards Ukraine. This is the first case of Russia utilizing specified a powerful long-range weapon since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The Russian attack was directed at companies and critical infrastructure in the town of Dniepr, located in the central-eastern part of Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, in addition to the ICBM, Russia besides fired 7 Ch-101 maneuvering missiles. Ukrainian air defence managed to shoot down six of them.
This attack came after Ukraine utilized US and British missiles to strike targets inside Russia, which Moscow has been informing for months as a serious escalation of the conflict.
Characteristics of intercontinental ballistic missiles
Intercontinental ballistic missiles have a scope of thousands of kilometres and are capable of carrying atomic warheads, although they can besides be equipped with conventional explosives. In this case, it is not clear what kind of ICBM was utilized or whether it caused any damage.
Reactions and consequences of utilizing ICBM
Russia's usage of ICBM in conflict with Ukraine represents a crucial escalation of war activities. In consequence to Ukraine's earlier attacks on Russia, Moscow changed its atomic doctrine, lowering the atomic weapons threshold. This decision raises concerns for the global community about the possible escalation of the conflict on a global scale.
mn