Rubezh intercontinental ballistic missile strike on Dnipro: details (VIDEO)

The fund published footage of the explosions on social media.

The Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that from 5:00 to 7:00 AM Russian troops attacked the city of Dnipro with missiles of various types. In particular, an intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from Astrakhan Oblast of the Russian Federation. According to Ukrainska Pravda, the Russians launched the RS-26 "Rubezh" medium-range missile.

In addition, an Kh-47M2 "Kinzhal" aeroballistic missile was launched from Tambov Oblast from a MiG-31K fighter, and seven Kh-101 cruise missiles were launched from Tu-95MS strategic bombers (launch area - Volgograd Oblast).

Even the day before, information was spreading in Telegram channels about the possibility of Russia’s launching an attack on Ukraine with the RS-26 "Rubezh" missile. The US, Spanish, Italian and Greek embassies in Ukraine warned that there is a risk of a massive air attack on Ukraine and temporarily closed their diplomatic offices.

Enterprises and critical infrastructure became the target of the aggressor in Dnipro. Russia claimed that it targeted the Pivdenmash plant in Dnipro. The Ukrainian side did not confirm this, although the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration said that a certain industrial enterprise was damaged.

In response, Astrakhan Oblast of the Russian Federation, from where the launch took place, was attacked by drones. Reports of an attack on the missile launch site in Kapustin Yar, where the RS-26 "Rubezh" complexes are based, circulated online.

Ukraine has not officially commented on these attacks. Yuriy Ihnat, a representative of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, noted: "Everything that flew (including from Kapustin Yar), where it flew, what was shot down and what was not shot down, is written on the official pages of the Air Force. No further information or any details from the Air Force regarding the morning missile attack are expected at this time. I ask for your understanding."

What is known about the intercontinental ballistic missile "Rubezh"?

RS-26 "Rubezh" is a Russian project of a mobile ground-based missile system of strategic purpose with an intercontinental ballistic missile. The Russian Federation claimed that the missile could be launched at a range of 2,000-6,000 km.

The US believes that this complex falls under the restrictions established by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. Russian "milbloggers" claimed that this could be the first combat use of such missiles.

Russia, however, is officially tightlipped about the possible use of "Rubezh". During the briefing on November 21, the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Maria Zakharova, received a call with a request not to comment on the latest ballistic missile strikes on Ukraine.

According to published data, the RS-26 has a length of 23 m and a diameter of 2 m. The missile weighs 40-50 tons, and the entire launch complex weighs 80 tons.

Militarnyi writes that "Rubezh" was designed for nuclear equipment. Its combat unit weighing 1,000-1,200 kg should be equipped with several (from three to six) combat units of individual guidance with a capacity of hundreds of kilotons (most often 3-4 units of 300 kt are specified). To destroy such a target, very expensive and specific anti-missile systems are needed, for example, the American THAAD.

Andriy Kharuk, a professor at the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi National Academy of Ground Forces, suggests that only a large-scale mock-up was launched on Dnipro, and that the current launch can serve as "a kind of demonstration of the technical feasibility of a nuclear strike on Ukraine."