Russia on Monday claimed to have hit an aviation repair plant in Ukraine’s western Lviv region last week with its Oreshnik ballistic missile, the first time either country has named the strike’s alleged target.
Moscow said it fired the Oreshnik in response to its allegations that Ukraine attempted to hit one of President Vladimir Putin’s residences in a drone strike, something Kyiv denied and the United States said it doubts happened.
It was the second time the weapon — which can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads — is known to have been used in combat.
“On the night of January 9th, the Lviv state aircraft repair plant was put out of action by the Oreshnik mobile ground-based missile system,” the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.
AFP is unable to verify the claim.
Ukraine has confirmed the missile was fired on the Lviv region, which is close to the EU border, and published images of what it said were fragments of the missile.
It said a “civilian target” was hit, but did not elaborate on the exact location or the extent of any damage.
Asked about Russia’s claim on Monday, Ukrainian air force spokesman Yuriy Ignat told AFP: “We never comment on where the hit was.”
Residents of Rudno, on the outskirts of Lviv and near the aviation plant, told AFP last Friday that they heard explosions at night, and some reported gas outages.
Russia said Ukraine used the plant to repair and service its Soviet-designed MiG-29 aircraft and the US-made F-16 jets supplied by the West.
Putin has claimed that Oreshnik, an intermediate-range missile that can reach targets between 3,000 and 5,500 kilometres (1,860-3,400 miles) away, is “impossible” to intercept by modern air defences.
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