US confirms Russia’s use of hypersonic missiles in Ukraine war

MADRID, March 20. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The United States has confirmed this Sunday that Russia has used hypersonic missiles in the Ukraine war, thus becoming the first known use of such missiles in combat, as confirmed by CNN.

US officials have explained that “it is likely” that these launches were intended to “test the weapons and send a message to the West” about Russian capabilities, multiple sources have told CNN.

The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed on March 19 the use of a ‘Kinzhal’ hypersonic missile for the first time since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine.

Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov confirmed the impact of the missile on the town of Deliatin, in the Ukrainian region of Ivano-Frankivsk, in which boxes of ammunition for combat aircraft were also destroyed, according to comments collected by TASS.

These types of missiles travel at a speed of ‘Mach 5’ (five times the speed of sound), so they are difficult to detect, which is a challenge for anti-missile defense systems, as explained by CNN.

The Pentagon has made developing hypersonic weapons one of its top priorities, not least because China and Russia are working to develop their own versions.