Russia fired a nuclear-capable missile in the latest of what it claims are retaliation strikes for an alleged attack on one of President Vladimir Putin‘s residences last month, the New York Post reports.
An Oreshnik hypersonic missile was launched from a nuclear testing site during a massive overnight bombing targeting Lviv, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Friday (January 9). Explosions were reported in the western Ukrainian city after the threat of the ballistic missile was detected from the Russian Kapustin Yar site just prior to midnight local time, the Ukrainian Air Force announced in a statement obtained by the New York Post on Friday.
The Oreshnik, which translates to hazel tree, is a hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of exceeding Mach 10 speed and was previously used only once in combat during the November 2024 strike on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. A top Russian official previously issued personal public threats against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after the Kremlin claimed Ukraine attacked one of Putin’s official residences with more than 90 drones last month.
Former Russian president and prime minister Dmitry Medvedev, who now serves as the country’s security council, shared multiple social media posts accusing Zelenskyy of “trying to derail the settlement of the conflict,” referencing ongoing peace talks sponsored by the United States.
“He wants war. Well, now at least he’ll have to stay in hiding for the rest of his worthless life,” Medvedev wrote.
Medvedev also shared a separate post on Telegram appearing to suggest that Zelenskyy should be “exhibited” in St. Petersburg after his “imminent demise.” Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavov publicly claimed that Ukraine attacked one of Putin’s official residences with more than 90 drones, all of which were shot down, on December 29 and said the Kremlin would now review its negotiation position to potentially end its nearly four-year invasion of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy denied the alleged attacks as a “complete fabrication” made as a justification for retaliation strikes following his meeting with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago on December 28.
“Russia is at it again, using dangerous statements to undermine all achievements of our shared diplomatic efforts with President Trump’s team,” Zelenskyy wrote on his X account. “We keep working together to bring peace closer. This alleged “residence strike” story is a complete fabrication intended to justify additional attacks against Ukraine, including Kyiv, as well as Russia’s own refusal to take necessary steps to end the war. Typical Russian lies. Furthermore, the Russians have already targeted Kyiv in the past, including the Cabinet of Ministers building. Ukraine does not take steps that can undermine diplomacy. To the contrary, Russia always takes such steps. This is one of many differences between us. It is critical that the world doesn’t stay silent now. We cannot allow Russia to undermine the work on achieving a lasting peace.”
Zelenskyy had previously revealed that the United States was offering a 15-year security guarantee as part of a plan to end Russia’s yearslong invasion following his meeting with Trump and prior to reports of alleged strikes targeting Putin’s residence.
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