Kyiv/Lviv, January 9, 2026 – Russia launched a large-scale aerial assault on Ukraine overnight Thursday into Friday, deploying its advanced nuclear-capable Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile for only the second time in the war, amid intensified attacks on energy and critical infrastructure during severe winter conditions.
The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed in a Friday statement that its forces conducted a “massive strike with high-precision long-range land- and sea-based weapons,” explicitly including the Oreshnik mobile medium-range missile system. The ministry described the operation as retaliation for what it claimed was a Ukrainian drone attack on one of President Vladimir Putin's residences in late December 2025 – an allegation denied by Ukraine and dismissed by U.S. officials as unfounded.
Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia fired a total of 36 missiles (including 22 cruise, 13 ballistic, and one medium-range ballistic) and 242 drones in the barrage. The Oreshnik, traveling along a ballistic trajectory at approximately 13,000 kilometers per hour (roughly Mach 10, or 10 times the speed of sound), struck a critical infrastructure facility in the western Lviv region, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the border with NATO member Poland. Ukrainian officials, including Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi, confirmed the ballistic missile impact but reported no casualties, with civilian buildings and residential areas unaffected. The strike targeted energy and possibly drone-related infrastructure, according to local reports and Russian military bloggers.
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) later released photos of missile fragments recovered from the Lviv site, which they identified as consistent with the Oreshnik system. The Ukrainian Air Force noted that the missile's exact type would be confirmed after further analysis of debris, but the reported speed aligned with Moscow's claims about the weapon's hypersonic capabilities.
This marked the second confirmed combat use of the Oreshnik, which Russia first deployed against a target in Dnipro in November 2024. The missile, named after the Russian word for "hazelnut tree," is an intermediate-range ballistic system capable of carrying multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs) and either conventional or nuclear warheads. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly described it as "unstoppable" by current missile defenses, with a range sufficient to reach targets across Europe.
The deployment follows Russia's announcement in late December 2025 that the Oreshnik system had entered active combat duty in neighboring Belarus, a close ally. Footage released by the Russian Defense Ministry showed the mobile launchers in an undisclosed location in Belarus, raising alarms in NATO countries about extended reach toward Western Europe.
In the capital Kyiv, the barrage began around midnight, with drones and missiles striking residential areas and infrastructure. City authorities reported four people killed and at least 10–22 injured (figures varied slightly across sources), with widespread power outages plunging parts of the city into darkness as temperatures fell to minus 5 degrees Celsius (23°F). Rescue operations continued into Friday morning amid freezing conditions.
The assault fits a pattern of intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy sector during winter, a tactic employed in previous years to disrupt heating, electricity, and civilian life. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly stated that such strikes aim to create chaos and exert psychological pressure on the population. Recent barrages have left hundreds of thousands without power in regions like Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia, exacerbating humanitarian challenges in sub-zero temperatures.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha condemned the Oreshnik strike as a “grave threat” to European security, given its proximity to EU and NATO borders, and called for a strong international response, including an urgent UN Security Council meeting. Kyiv dismissed Russia's justification as “absurd,” reiterating that no attack on Putin's residence occurred.
The escalation occurs against a backdrop of heightened Russia-West tensions. Moscow has warned that any Western troops deployed to Ukraine as part of a potential peace deal would be treated as “legitimate targets,” following pledges by the UK and France to consider such deployments. Separately, Russia condemned a recent U.S. seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the Atlantic, alleging a violation of international maritime law, while Washington maintained the vessel was sanctioned for illicit oil transport.
The Kremlin has not issued further public comments on the tanker incident or the broader diplomatic implications of the latest strikes. Analysts view the Oreshnik use as both a military escalation and a signal to Western negotiators amid ongoing U.S.-led efforts to broker peace terms.
As Ukraine continues repairs and appeals for more air defense support, the overnight attack underscores the persistent risks to civilian life and infrastructure in the nearly four-year conflict.
