Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was interrupted in a press conference by a phone call where she was told not to comment on claims Moscow had launched an intercontinental ballistic missile, it has been reported.
Social media users posted footage of Zakharova addressing reporters Thursday after Kyiv claimed Russia had launched an ICBM—which can carry nuclear payloads—at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
If confirmed, this would be the first-ever use of such a weapon in combat, although unnamed U.S. officials cited by ABC News and CBS have said that it was a ballistic missile rather than an ICBM.
Newsweek has contacted the Pentagon and the Russian foreign ministry for comment.
Amid the uncertainty, Zakharova appeared to inadvertently reveal some details about the early morning strike in a hot microphone moment while taking a phone call.
The X account War is Translated shows Zakharova telling an unidentified caller that she is in a briefing. The voice on the phone can be heard saying "the ballistic missile strike…no comment."
Notably, the caller did not use the word "intercontinental" but appeared to disclose that the strike had targeted Dnipro's Yuzhmash military facility.
During the briefing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova received a phone call and was asked not to comment on the strike on the Dnipro by an intercontinental ballistic missile.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) November 21, 2024
But thanks to Masha's intelligence, "no one heard anything." pic.twitter.com/Nu6ng5HcnL
Pro-Ukrainian X user Maria Drutska was among social media users who shared the clip, writing "absolutely brilliant." The Kyiv Independent described the video as "a theatrical presentation likely designed to strike fear into the hearts of naive western politicians."
Zakharova later said that before the conference she had asked experts whether the strike was a topic within her remit. "The answer came during the briefing, the foreign ministry is not commenting, so there is no intrigue," Russian state news agency Tass reported.
Ukraine's Air Force did not specify what kind of ballistic missile was among the missiles that Russia used to hit Dnipro. They had been launched from Russia's Astrakhan region, around 430 miles away.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country was attacked by a "new Russian rocket" which had the "characteristics" of an ICBM and that "examinations are underway."
However, Russian nuclear weapons expert Pavel Podvig said in an X thread that "one must be skeptical and cautious" about Kyiv's claims and referred to reports that the weapon in question was an RS-26 missile. He described this as "not really an intercontinental missile" but "in effect an intermediate-range missile."
Russia has to notify the U.S. and China in advance of any ICBM launch, the thread added.