Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin threatens to target Kyiv with new missile after energy grid attack

Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to strike “decision-making centres” in Kyiv with Moscow’s new intermediate-range ballistic missile.

Putin boasted Moscow’s production of advanced missile systems exceeds that of the NATO military alliance by 10 times, as he vowed to respond to the use of Western missiles by Ukraine.

Russian attacks have not so far struck government buildings in the Ukrainian capital. Kyiv is heavily protected by air defences, but Putin says Russia’s Oreshnik hypersonic missile is incapable of being intercepted.

“At present, the Ministry of Defence and the General Staff are selecting targets to hit on Ukrainian territory,” Putin told the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) in Kazakhstan.

“These could be military facilities, defence and industrial enterprises, or decision-making centres in Kyiv.”

It comes as Russia’s “massive” aerial attack on energy infrastructure across Ukraine left at least one million people without power.

In Russia’s second big attack on Ukraine’s energy grid this month, damage to the energy and other critical infrastructure was reported by officials across the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia used cruise missiles with cluster munitions in Thursday’s attack, calling it a “vile escalation”.