Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Mr Putin’s acknowledgment of the use of the new weapon was another escalation in the more than 1,000-day-old war, following the deployment of North Korean troops on Russian soil. File | Photo credit: AP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday (21 November 2024) that a Russian attack on Ukraine with a new type of ballistic missile was a “clear and severe escalation” of the war and called for strong worldwide condemnation.

“This is a clear and severe escalation of the scale and brutality of this war,” Mr Zelenskyy wrote on X, referring to a strike on the central city of Dnipro.

“The use of a ballistic missile against Ukraine today is further evidence that Russia has no interest in peace,” he wrote.

“The world must answer,” he wrote. “Right now, there is no strong reaction from the world.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a televised address, said Russia had responded to Kiev’s use of US and British missiles by firing a new type of medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile at a Ukrainian military installation.

In his comments on X, Mr Zelenskyy said Mr Putin’s acknowledgment of the use of the new weapon was another escalation in the more than 1,000-day-old war, following the deployment of North Korean troops on Russian soil.

“Putin is not just prolonging the war, he is spitting in the face of those in the world who truly want peace to be restored,” he wrote.

“The world must respond. At the moment, there is no strong reaction from the world… The lack of harsh reactions to Russia’s actions sends a message that such behavior is acceptable,” he added.