Russia used supersonic missiles[/B] for the second consecutive day. Putin's forces hit Ukraine with cruise missiles from its ships in the Black Sea and Caspian Sea, and fired supersonic missiles from Crimean airspace.
Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Russia carried out strikes against Ukraine's military infrastructure on Saturday night and Sunday morning.
"Russia," he noted, "launched 'Kalibr' cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea and Kinzhal supersonic missiles from Crimean airspace to destroy a fuel storage facility used by the Ukrainian military."
The supersonic missiles, with a design that allows them to perform complex maneuvers throughout flight and reach speeds of up to Mach 10, are currently impossible to shoot down by any anti-aircraft defense system, at least according to Moscow.
Their use in the war in Ukraine was first reported on Saturday, state news agency RIA reported.
The missile attack is shown in aerial footage released by the Russian military. The footage shows large, elongated buildings in a snow-covered area before one of them was obliterated by a huge explosion. People can be seen running for their lives as smoke billows out.
What are supersonic missiles
Russian President Vladimir Putin, has repeatedly stressed the country's investment in supersonic missiles, which can travel at more than five times the speed of sound.
In fact, last December he boasted that Russia was leading the way in supersonic missiles, which are difficult to detect because they can change direction.
Moscow claims the "Kinzhal" - or Dagger - is "unstoppable" by current Western weapons systems, the BBC reports. The missile has a range of 1,250 miles and can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads.
Recent reports noted that MiG-31 fighters had been sent to Kaliningrad. There is, however, no indication where the attack on the weapons depot in Ukraine was launched from.
Russia reportedly first used the weapon during the 2016 war in Syria to support the Assad regime, though it was unclear whether it was the same model of missile.
Some of the heaviest bombing occurred in 2016 during the battle for Aleppo, resulting in hundreds of civilian deaths.
Is it a game changer?
"I don't think it's that significant," argues James Acton, a nuclear policy expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "I don't know how much advantage Russia has from using supersonic missiles."
James Acton points out that the Kinzhal is estimated to have been an Iskander missile modified for fighter aircraft and that Iskander-M missiles have already been fired from Russian ground-based launchers since the beginning of the war.
A warning to Ukraine and the West that Russia "has the means to escalate" the conflict is what Dr. James Bosbotin, an expert on defense and international affairs, calls a warning.
The Ukrainian military cannot possibly defend itself against attacks from these missiles. "The speed of the Kinzhal puts it beyond the range of any Ukrainian air defence system and their launch can be from distances beyond the range of Ukraine," he tells the BBC, adding that the supersonic missile was most likely launched from southern Russia.
He also added that the launch of this missile was a "signal" that Russia could hit targets in other parts of Europe.
Dominique Kunertova of the Centre for Security Studies in Zurich describes the use of the supersonic missile as a demonstration sign.
"Even if it was used, it should be seen as an isolated move, because Russia does not have a large number of these missiles," she tells the BBC, adding that it is a "signal to the West, because Putin is annoyed that the West dares to transfer all these weapons [TO UKRAINE]."
"It is arguable that it is so accurate, so it is not a game changer," he concludes."
Source: in.gr
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