On Saturday, Russia claimed to have struck a munitions depot in western Ukraine with a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile, a move that one expert believes is part of Russia’s “strategic plan,” Fox News informed.
Although Fox News Digital has been unable to confirm whether Russia did really launch a hypersonic missile in a combat environment for the first time, Russia analyst Rebekah Koffler believes that even the possibility of doing so is significant.
Koffler said that this is a game-change message in the world of geopolitics, and a strategic one as well, adding that Putin is making small steps on the way to nuclear warfare.
Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said the Kinzhal, which means “dagger,” was used to attack subterranean storage on Friday.
According to Koffler, a former Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) intelligence officer for Russian doctrine and strategy, Putin is indicating to the US and NATO that he is ready to expand Russia’s force posture by firing this precise missile.
She said that choosing the hypersonic missile was a message that they have this kind of weapon and that the US does not. Additionally, Koffler said that this missile can be loaded with nuclear warheads as well.
According to Koffler, employing a Kinzhal missile with a conventional warhead was no more strategic for Russia than using another long-range cruise or ballistic missile.
She also said that Putin has a high tolerance for nuclear warfare and that if he is backed in a corner, he would have no other choice but to use nuclear weapons.
Russia continues to follow the theory of reciprocal deterrence, making it less likely that he will use a nuclear bomb against the United States or a NATO ally, but it is uncertain how the United States or NATO would react if Russia used a nuclear weapon in Ukraine.
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