Key Points and Summary – Ukraine alleges Russia has launched the nuclear-capable 9M729 (NATO: SSC-8) at least 23 times since August, reviving a class of land-based cruise missiles once banned by the INF Treaty.
-Wreckage markings and range estimates near 1,200 km suggest a system designed to strike deep from mobile launchers inside Russia, complicating defense and signaling escalation.
MSTA-S Russian Army. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
-Kyiv frames the deployments as both lethal and psychological warfare—paired with Putin’s showy tests of Burevestnik and Poseidon—to pressure the West.
-The upshot: a treaty-era “ghost weapon” is back in Europe’s battlespace, raising risks for Ukraine and neighbors and sharpening debates over long-range deterrence.
Nuclear-Capable 9M729: Why Ukraine Says Things Could Get Worse
Ukraine has accused Russia of using the controversial 9M729 cruise missile in multiple attacks over the past three months.
This is the same weapon that led Donald Trump to withdraw from a major Cold War–era arms control pact.
If confirmed, the weapon’s deployment marks a dangerous escalation in Moscow’s long-range strike capabilities and a fresh breach of the spirit of international arms control
Ukrainian foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, revealed to Reuters that the Kremlin had used the ground-based 9M729 missile.
Known as the SSC-8 by NATO, the 9M729 has reportedly been launched a minimum of 23 times since this August. A pair of earlier launches were also recorded in 2022.
These weapons are a major step up from the average drone or missile, and can transport conventional or nuclear warheads.
News of this powerful weapon was so divisive that Washington abandoned the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 2019 in protest of Moscow’s covert work on it.
The INF Treaty had banned land-based missiles that could travel 500 to 5,500 kilometers, rules the creation of 9M729s clearly flout.
One top Ukrainian military source told the wire service that the missile traveled some 1,200 kilometers in a recent strike on the village of Lapaiivka in Western Ukraine, leaving four people dead. Images of the wreckage reviewed by independent weapons analysts reportedly show components marked “9M729,” consistent with the missile’s known design.
“The use of this INF-banned system shows Putin’s utter contempt for the United States and for President Trump’s diplomatic efforts to end the war,” Sybiha told Reuters. He said that Ukraine supports Trump’s proposed peace framework but argued that only “maximum pressure” — including strengthening Kyiv’s own long-range strike capacity, could compel Moscow to negotiate in good faith.
What Happens Next in the Ukraine War?
The 9M729’s alleged use comes as Russia expands testing of other strategic weapons, including its nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile and the Poseidon undersea drone.
Together, the systems underscore the Kremlin’s apparent drive to showcase nuclear-capable assets even as the U.S. resumes testing of its own.
But are these weapons merely a threat to Ukraine, or the rest of Europe too?’
We know that Russia is able to launch them via discreet, moveable platforms deep within its borders, making them much more challenging to defend against than similar missiles.
For now, the missile’s use in Ukraine is both physically deadly and a propaganda tool for Moscow.
Russia is reviving a type of weapon once deemed far too destabilizing to be allowed in Europe, while refusing to progress peace talks. For Ukraine and its allies, things could soon go from bad to worse.
About the Author: Georgia Gilholy
Georgia Gilholy is a journalist based in the United Kingdom who has been published in Newsweek, The Times of Israel, and the Spectator. Gilholy writes about international politics, culture, and education. You can follow her on X: @llggeorgia.
More Military
Canada’s F-35 Fighter Debate Summed Up in 3 Words
The U.S. Air Force’s B-52J Bomber Crisis
Mach 5.1 X-51 Waverider ‘Hypersonic Scramjet’ Has a Message for the Air Force
Beast Mode: How the F-35 Stealth Fighter Bolts on 22,000 Pounds of Bombs
