Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday (Nov. 28) threatened to strike its new Oreshnik hypersonic missile at the “decision-making centres” in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv.
Putin made the threat a week after using the experimental weapon for the first time in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
“We do not rule out the use of Oreshnik against the military, military-industrial facilities or decision-making centres, including in Kyiv,” Putin said during a press conference in the Kazakh capital Astana.
“Authorities in Kyiv today continue their attempts to strike at our vital facilities, including in Saint Petersburg and Moscow,” he added.
He further announced Russia’s plans to further increase the production of Oreshnik missiles, which Putin claims are impossible to intercept.
The intermediate-range ballistic missile can travel at a speed of Mach 10, or up to three kilometres per second.
Putin added that the weapon had the destructive power of a meteorite. “The kinetic impact is powerful, like a meteorite falling. We know in history what meteorites have fallen where, and what the consequences were. Sometimes it was enough for whole lakes to form.”
‘Minimal’ damage caused by US-made missiles
Putin said that the damage caused by recent Ukrainian attacks in Russia using US-made ATACMS missiles was “minimal”.
Watch | Putin Warns West: You Can’t Stop This Missile
He further said the use of Western-supplied missiles against Moscow amounted to “direct involvement of Western countries” in the conflict and carried “risks”.
Putin calls Trump ‘intelligent’
The Russian President called US President-elect Donald Trump an “intelligent person”, adding that he will find a solution. Although Putin did not specify what solution he was referring to.
“As far as I imagine the again-elected president, he is actually an intelligent person, already quite experienced. I think he will find a solution,” Putin said about Trump during the Kazan conference.
‘Will not allow Ukraine…’
At the conference in Kazakhastan, Putin also said that he would not let Ukraine ever get hold of nuclear weapons.
“Moscow will use “all means of destruction at Russia’s disposal” were Ukraine to ever get hold of nuclear weapons, Russia’s state-run news agency RIA Novosti reported.
“We will not allow this,” Putin said.
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(With inputs from agencies)