UKRAINE are confident that they will be able to fight off Vladimir Putin’s latest missile that he has threatened to unleash on the UK.
Fearless Ukrainian officials believe Russia only has a few “Oreshnik” hypersonic ballistic missiles left after they attacked Dnipro on Thursday.
Putin claims his new catastrophic toy travels at 10 times the speed of sound and therefore couldn’t be intercepted.
The tyrant warned the West – including his enemies in the UK and the US – that he will use the weapon on them “if necessary”.
But a Ukrainian source close to the General Staff believes Russia only has a limited supply of the experimental missiles, reports RBC-Ukraine.
They say the strike on Thursday morning was an intimidation tactic to show off Vlad’s bad intentions if he is crossed.
Ukraine is still firmly backing themselves to outmanoeuvre and overcome Russia‘s increased aggression.
Their confidence comes from the growing strength and unity between themselves and their Nato allies.
The UK and US allowed Ukraine to use British-made Storm Shadow and US-supplied ATACMS missiles to strike inside Russia this month – angering an already paranoid Putin.
The Kyiv-based source feels that this relationship will help them secure more weapons to counter the Oreshnik.
They added: “Ukraine will initiate negotiations on an attempt to counter such weapons together with partners.
“Either obtaining the appropriate systems capable of shooting them down, or carrying out the modernisation of the Patriot systems.”
Despite the confidence inside Kyiv there are fears that Russia may have up to 10 of these new terrifying ballistic missiles in its arsenal.
Deputy head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine Vadym Skibitskyi says Vlad would only begin testing the weapon if he had enough available to strike fear in his foes.
Skibitskyi added that he believes Vlad has stationed nearly 580,000 troops in Russia’s Kursk Oblast as he pummels the region.
Ukraine branded Russia’s strike a major ramping up of the “scale and brutality” of the war by a “crazy neighbour”.
Zelensky said the new hypersonic ballistic missile reached the speed and heights of an ICBM.
ICBMs have a range of over 5,500km and were designed for nuclear war.
They blast into the edge of space and can reach speeds of 13,000mph before hurtling almost down to their targets.
Britain’s defence secretary John Healey said Russia had been planning the strike “for months”.
Nato’s Eastern European members, including Latvia and Estonia, have been anxiously watching Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine since it began in 2022.
Finland, which borders Russia to its east, has ramped up national security by publishing advice for citizens to prepare “for incidents and crises”.
Nordic citizens were also told to prepare for war and handed chilling survival guides.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has even spoken about how the conflict is entering an “unknown phase” with deranged Putin hellbent on seizing Ukraine as his own.
Tusk said: “The war in the east is entering a decisive phase, we feel that the unknown is approaching.
“The conflict is taking on dramatic proportions. The last few dozen hours have shown that the threat is serious and real when it comes to global conflict.”
And Germany’s World War Three preparation plans were also revealed in a 1,000-page secret document.
China has reiterated calls for “calm” and restraint by all parties in the war.
It comes as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dramatically intensified this week.
Kyiv launched US ATACMS missiles against Putin’s territory overnight on Monday – and British Storm Shadow rockets on Wednesday.
Russia’s ambassador to the UK, Andrei Kelin, claimed the use of Storm Shadow missiles against a military site in Russia meant Britain “is now directly involved in this war”.
Moscow has made similar claims in the past over Western support for Ukraine.
On Tuesday, President Putin signed a new nuclear doctrine to lower the threshold for doomsday strikes.
The policy, months in the making, allows Russia unleash a nuclear first strike if it is attacked by a country backed by a nuclear power.
How Ukraine could turn war around in WEEKS using US missiles
EXCLUSIVE by Sayan Bose, Foreign News Reporter, and Georgie English, Foreign News Reporter
After 1,000 days of Vlad’s gruelling war in Ukraine, the conflict has left more than a million soldiers and civilians dead or wounded.
Putin’s forces invaded their neighbouring nation in February 2022 as part of the deluded tyrant’s plan to rebuild the Soviet Union amid his paranoid fears over Nato.
Almost three years later, Kyiv’s battle-weary troops are fighting to the death on multiple fronts.
They have faced several setbacks in the grinding conflict as Russia has made slow but incremental gains over Ukrainian territory.
But the green light from the US that now allows Ukraine to use long-range ATACMS missiles could be a game changer, an expert has said.
Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon told The Sun how Ukraine could turn the war around in six weeks when provided with unwavering support from key allies in the West.
The former British army officer said Washington’s decision to allow Ukraine to use ATACMS is a “significant development”.
He explained: “Since day one Putin and his close aides have been threatening a nuclear strike if we escalate it, and today is the 1,000th day of this conflict, and it hasn’t happened.
“It should embolden our leaders, who must now realise that Putin’s threats are completely hollow.
“With the Russian boxer on the ropes, now is the time that we enable the Ukrainians to absolutely put in the killer punch and be in a really good position for the expected ceasefire.”
He added: “The fact that the Russians have been so vehement in their verbal attacks against the use of Nato missiles shows that this is a significant step.
“It could allow Ukraine to gain a good position in [the next] six weeks which will be important for Zelensky if Trump forces a ceasefire after getting back in office.”
