Russia has claimed that Ukraine used a ballistic missile in combat for the first time, potentially marking a new stage in Kyiv’s long-range strike capabilities.
Russia’s defense ministry, in its Thursday daily briefing, said its air defenses intercepted a “long-range operational-tactical missile” within the past 24 hours, along with 7 guided aerial bombs and 602 fixed-wing drones, as reported by Bloomberg.
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The ministry did not specify the type of missile or provide additional details, and Kyiv Post is unable to locate the original statement on official Russian channels.
Similar claims were echoed by other Russian sources.
Russian state news agency Interfax, citing the defense ministry, wrote on Wednesday that a “long-range operational-tactical missile” had been intercepted without specifying the location.
Earlier, Russian military blog Voyennyy Osvedomitel (Military Informer) claimed a Ukrainian ballistic missile may have been shot down in the Moscow region during a missile alert on Tuesday.
According to Voyennyy Osvedomitel, one of the S-300/S-400 air defense systems protecting the region engaged a target “at a high altitude,” which it said was unusual for a drone or cruise missile. The channel also reported that a large crater was found at the impact site.
“It is not excluded that this could have been the interception of a Ukrainian ballistic missile,” the channel wrote.
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Footage showing a smoke plume and a column of smoke near the presumed crash site was also published by the Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova+.
Other pro-Russian Telegram channels, including Pora Domoj and Pozuvnoy OSETIN, also speculated that the object could have been Ukraine’s domestically developed FP-9 ballistic missile by Fire Point.
“Nobody has transferred such missiles to Kyiv and is unlikely to do so. At the very least, there would have been rumors about it. The only missile they could have used is the FP-9, which is still under development,” one channel claimed.
Ukraine has not publicly confirmed the use of any ballistic missile.
Tuesday’s attack on Moscow
Ukraine struck a space communications center near Moscow for the second time on Tuesday, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He described the target as Russia’s largest ground-based satellite communications complex, used for military command, reconnaissance, and troop coordination.
Russia said its air defenses intercepted 419 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 56 on approach to Moscow. However, the attack temporarily disrupted operations at Moscow’s Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports.
Fire Point’s hints at FP-9 strikes against Moscow
The claim comes amid reports that Ukrainian defense company Fire Point is nearing flight tests of its FP-9 ballistic missile.
In June, Fire Point Chief Designer Denys Shtilerman said the FP-9 could enter testing this summer or by early autumn after engine development is completed.
According to the company, the missile is designed for deep-strike missions against targets inside Russia, with a reported range of about 850 kilometers (528 miles).
Shtilerman had hinted at “test flights toward Moscow” at the time.
“I expect that this summer, or at the latest in early autumn, we will begin test flights toward Moscow,” he said.
Bloomberg noted that the latest Russian claims, if true, could “mark a new step” in Kyiv’s deep strike capabilities.
“If confirmed, the firing of a ballistic missile would mark a new step in Kyiv’s effort to expand its domestically produced long-range strike capabilities beyond drones and cruise-type systems,” the publication wrote.
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