Ukrainian sources have claimed that Ukraine’s domestically developed FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile was used to launch profitable deep strikes in opposition to infrastructure on the Kapustin Yar Check Vary, which has been carefully related to the testing and launches of Russia’s newly operationalised Oreshnik intermediate vary ballistic missile system. The Oreshnik is without doubt one of the most excessive profile new weapons programs lately introduced into service within the Russian Armed Forces, and was introduced after its first fight use in November 2024 to strike Ukrainian targets. One missile has since been launched from the Kapustin Yar Check Vary on January 8, 2026, to strike targets in western Ukraine. Claims of a profitable strike on the vary have the potential to considerably increase morale in Ukraine, whereas boosting the status of the Flamingo cruise missile program and doubtlessly producing extra funding from sponsors amongst NATO member states.
Analysts have extensively questioned Ukrainain claims of a profitable strike on the Kapustin Yar Check Vary, noting that satellite tv for pc imagery cited as proof reveals no injury to the power. One U.S. analysis analyst specialising in satellite tv for pc imagery and missile forces, Decker Eveleth, noticed that the imagery being circulated on-line by Ukrainian and different Jap European sources had been misinterpreted, and didn’t present affect injury from a missile strike. “This isn’t true, and dangerous imagery evaluation… They aren’t seeing seen injury in a three-meter picture. They’re seeing smoke from the station’s energy plant working usually,” he noticed. The analyst revealed higher-resolution satellite tv for pc pictures taken a number of days after the timeframe referenced in earlier studies, stating that the photographs present no structural injury to buildings on the website. “Here’s a 0.5-meter shot three days after the picture being cited… There is no such thing as a injury to the power,” he concluded.
The notably excessive profile of the Oreshnik program has made it extremely advantageous for Ukrainian sources to assert a profitable assault. Head of Russia’s International Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin noticed that the missile’s second fight use on January 6 had a “staggering” impact on defence planners within the Western world, and was perceived within the West “as a warning in opposition to their navy’s direct involvement… within the hostilities.” “Each [their] consultants and navy specialists admitted they’d no technical or navy technical means to dam these programs,” he added. Different Russian officers have equally pointed to the appreciable affect which the missile system’s introduction into service has had on the strategic stability between Russia and NATO. By portraying its forces and its indigenous missile program as able to weakening this new strategic weapon aimed toward targets throughout Europe, Ukrainian sources might have been searching for to additional bolster Western assist for his or her ongoing conflict effort in opposition to Russia.
Ukrainian authorities and media sources have been revealed to have made numerous false studies of navy successes prior to now, with one of the distinguished being the extensively reported declare {that a} Soviet period MiG-29 fighter piloted by an area ace, known as the ‘Ghost of Kiev,’ gained large numbers of kills in opposition to Russian fighters. It was was later extensively confirmed that this had been false and have been propagated to spice up morale. The Oreshnik is perceived to pose a very vital problem to Western Bloc pursuits on account of its use of hypersonic glide automobiles, which make it successfully unattainable to intercept even for brand new generations of air defence programs such because the Arrow 3 lately deployed in Germany or the David’s Sling scheduled for deployment in Finland. These automobiles can strategy targets from surprising instructions, manoeuvre in each pitch and yaw, and have excessive reentry speeds, making them optimum for each typical and impartial strikes on targets throughout Europe.
