Russia to begin mass production of 'unstoppable' ballistic missile, Putin warns as Zelenskyy urges 'serious response'
22 November 2024, 19:25 | Updated: 22 November 2024, 20:18
Vladimir Putin has said Russia will ramp up production of the new “unstoppable” hypersonic ballistic missile it fired at Ukraine on Thursday.
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Known as Oreshnik, the intermediate-range rocket cannot be intercepted by existing technology, the Russian president told a meeting with his ministry of defence, according to state media outlet RIA Novosti.
Only Russia has access to this “unstoppable” missile, he reportedly said.
It comes after the UK and the United States authorised Ukraine to fire Western-made missiles into Russia, an escalation the Kremlin has warned could drag Kyiv’s allies into the conflict.
Zelensky also urged the West to undertake a "serious response to Putin's intimidation" on Friday, explaining that the "Russian missile threat" can't be ignored.
"There is no countermeasure to such a missile, no means of intercepting it, in the world today. And I will emphasise once again that we will continue testing this newest system. It is necessary to establish serial production," Putin said.
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The Kremlin has said it will begin mass producing the missiles following the US and UK’s decision to allow Kyiv to strike Russia with long-range Western weapons.
Putin’s forces hit the Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Thursday in an attack the Kremlin said was retaliation for the decision.
"Russia conducted combat tests of the 'Oreshnik' hypersonic missile system in response to the aggressive actions of Nato countries against Russia," Putin said in the video message on Thursday.
"In response to the use of American and British long-range weapons on 21 November of this year, the Russian armed forces launched a combined strike on one of the facilities of the military-industrial complex of Ukraine.
"In combat conditions, one of the newest Russian medium-range missile systems was tested, among other things. In this case, with a ballistic missile in a nuclear-free hypersonic equipment."
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In response, Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned Putin is 'testing' the West’s support of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said: "The world must respond. Right now, there is no strong reaction from the world.
"Putin is very sensitive to this. He is testing you, dear partners. It is clear who the sole culprit of this war is—who started it on February 24th and who continues to pour all resources into its continuation. He must be stopped.
"A lack of tough reactions to Russia’s actions sends a message that such behaviour is acceptable. This is what Putin is doing."
It comes after the Russian ambassador to the UK warned that the UK was now "directly involved" in the war.
Andrey Kelin, the Russian ambassador to the UK, told Sky News the use of long-range missiles "cannot happen" without the UK's involvement.
This week has seen a series of dramatic escalations in Putin’s war, including a change to Russia's nuclear doctrine.
On Tuesday, Putin signed a new doctrine lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons if Ukraine were to use Western-supplied long-range missiles to strike targets inside Russia.
