Russia’s defence ministry vowed unspecified “retaliatory measures” after Ukraine launched US-supplied ATACMS missiles at the border region of Belgorod on Friday.
The ministry said earlier on Saturday that it had successfully downed eight of the tactical missiles as well as dozens of Ukrainian drones over the past day.
Ukraine’s actions were supported by Kyiv’s “Western curators,” Russia said. St. Petersburg airport in Russia’s northwest was also closed for several hours on Saturday as a response to drone activity in the region.
It wasn’t the first time Ukraine has used the US long-range weapons to strike targets within Russia since President Joe Biden in November approved limited use of the missiles by Kyiv’s forces.
Shortly after Ukraine fired the ATACMS in the days following Biden’s decision, President Vladimir Putin threatened to strike “decision-making centres” in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv with Russia’s new “Oreshnik” intermediate-range ballistic missile.
In December, Russia said Ukraine struck a military airfield in the Azov Sea area with six ATACMS, and Putin touted the Oreshniks again in his annual press conference on 19 December.
Kyiv’s future use of the missiles is in the balance, though. President-elect Donald Trump told Time magazine in December that he was “very vehemently” opposed to Ukraine using the missiles to strike Russia, calling Biden’s decision to authorise their use “foolish.”
Ukraine said separately on Saturday that Russia launched 81 drones overnight on its territory.
