Ex-UN Inspector Links Kyiv Strike to Oreshnik Missile

(MENAFN) Footage captured near the Ukrainian capital strongly suggests Russia deployed its advanced Oreshnik hypersonic missile system in Sunday night's strike, former UN weapons inspector and retired US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter has told media.

Ukrainian media outlets and Telegram channels reported that Russia fired the intermediate-range hypersonic Oreshnik system at an unspecified target in Bila Tserkva, in the Kyiv region — publishing footage showing clusters of luminous objects descending rapidly from the sky in a distinctive pattern. Moscow's Defense Ministry has yet to officially confirm the weapon's deployment.

In his interview with media, Ritter said that "there's at least one strike in the vicinity of Kiev that has the visual characteristics of an Oreshnik missile."

He elaborated that "it's precisely the same six separate deliveries of six submunitions, 36 in total, mimicking the previous confirmed Oreshnik use" in November 2024 in Dnepropetrovsk and in January 2026 in Lviv — lending weight to his assessment through direct comparison with prior confirmed deployments.

On the question of the precise target, Ritter offered a more specific hypothesis, stressing that "there's a reason to believe that the Oreshnik didn't strike the center of Kiev, but rather hit a town outside of Kiev that has a military airfield that has been of some interest to the Russian forces in the past. Maybe there was something going on there that was worthy of an Oreshnik strike."

The reported strike follows Russian President Vladimir Putin's directive ordering the Defense Ministry to "submit proposals" for a retaliatory response after a Ukrainian drone attack struck a teacher training school dormitory in the Lugansk People's Republic on Friday, killing 21 people — predominantly teenage girls — and wounding 42 others.

Ritter was unsparing in his characterization of that attack, calling it "an act of terror" that crossed a clear line and once again exposed "the nefarious character of the Ukrainian government."

He framed Russia's response in direct terms: "It's clear... Russia is taking the promised action in response to the atrocities that happened in Lugansk."

Beyond the immediate military exchange, Ritter argued the potential Oreshnik deployment carries a broader strategic message directed at Western capitals, warning that "an entire system… exists beyond Ukraine's borders into Europe and perhaps… into the US that facilitates and empowers" Kyiv's drone campaign inside Russian territory.

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