Russia on Wednesday accused Ukraine of launching four US-supplied ATACMS missiles at the southern Russian city of Voronezh in what it described as an attempted strike on civilian targets.
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Ukraine’s military confirmed a day earlier that it had used US-provided ATACMS missiles to hit military positions inside Russia, calling the strikes a “significant development.” Kyiv received the long-range systems in 2023 but had initially been barred from using them outside Ukrainian territory, large parts of which remain under Russian control.
According to Russia’s defence ministry, all four ATACMS missiles were intercepted by S-400 air defence units and Pantsir missile-gun systems. The ministry said falling debris damaged the roofs of a retirement home, an orphanage, and one residential house in Voronezh but reported no civilian casualties.
The ministry also released images purportedly showing missile fragments and claimed that Russian air reconnaissance identified the launch site in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region.
In response, Russia said it carried out strikes using Iskander-M ballistic missiles to destroy two Ukrainian multiple rocket launchers.
Ukraine last used US-made ATACMS against Russian territory in January, firing six missiles at the Belgorod region. Following earlier Ukrainian strikes last year involving ATACMS and British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a retaliatory hypersonic missile strike on Ukraine.
The latest exchange underscores the escalating use of advanced Western weapons in the conflict, as well as growing cross-border missile activity between the two nations.
