Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Thursday, November 21, that Moscow could strike the military installations of any country whose weapons were used against Russia. His statement came after Russia launched a hypersonic ballistic missile at a Ukrainian military facility, escalating tensions in the ongoing conflict.

Putin criticised the West for escalating the war by allowing Ukraine to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles. He stated that this was transforming the conflict into a global issue. In response to NATO countries’ aggressive actions, Russia had conducted combat tests of the new “Oreshnik” (the hazel) hypersonic missile system.

“In response to the use of American and British long-range weapons, on November 21 of this year, the Russian armed forces launched a combined strike on one of the facilities of the military-industrial complex of Ukraine,” Putin said.

He also emphasised that in combat conditions, one of Russia’s newest medium-range missile systems had been tested, “among other things. In this case, with a ballistic missile in a nuclear-free hypersonic equipment.”

The launch signals a clear escalation of Russia’s military response to NATO’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict.