Russia begins using Soviet-era Kh-55 missiles that are capable of carrying a nuclear warhead – General Staff

Against the background of the lack of success on the frontline, Russia continues to launch missile attacks on critical infrastructure and civilian facilities in different regions of Ukraine.

According to Colonel Mykola Danyliuk, a representative of the Central Military and Scientific Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russians have begun to use Soviet missiles that are capable of carrying a nuclear charge.

He announced this at a briefing at the Military Media Center on December 1, 2022.

“In the period from 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. on October 31, 2022, the enemy carried out another massive strike on the territory of Ukraine using more than 50 cruise missiles, most of which were identified as Kh-101 missiles and a 3М-14 the Kalibr missile,” said Colonel Danyliuk.

According to the officer, after shelling in the areas of the villages of Subich and Knyazhpil, Kamianets-Podilskyi district, Khmelnitsky region, and in the village of Zastavne, Lviv region, fragments of cruise missiles were discovered, which had not been used by the enemy until that time. The military demonstrated fragments of the Kh-55SM missile warhead.

“These fragments were found to belong to the “nuclear” Kh-55 strategic cruise missile. This is a Soviet missile that is designed to strike strategic targets, the coordinates of which are known in advance. It flies at extremely low altitude, at subsonic speed with the ability to circle the terrain,” said Colonel Danylyuk.

The representative of the Central Military and Scientific Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine noted a change in the tactics of the use of air attack equipment by Russians. Probably, the use of Soviet-made cruise missiles equipped with a non-explosive warhead is due to several factors and is aimed at exposing Ukraine’s air defense system and its depletion.

This may also indicate the depletion of stocks of modern cruise missiles in the Russian Federation.

The officer of the General Staff stressed that even an “unsettled” missile poses a significant threat due to its own kinetic energy and fuel residues. This is evidenced by the last strike when a rocket Kh-55 hit an apartment building.

The Colonel noted that all detected Kh-55 missiles had deliberately erased serial numbers.

The Kh-55SM air-launched missile is a modification of the Soviet Kh-55 cruise missile with an extended range.

These subsonic missiles fly at extremely low altitudes with a circumference of the terrain.