Starmer, Macron, Merz condemn Russia's Oreshnik strike on Ukraine

Downing Street stated this, Ukrinform reports, citing The Guardian.

It is noted that the three leaders held a phone conversation earlier in the afternoon to coordinate foreign policy issues.

A spokesperson for Starmer said the leaders "reflected on the strong unity in support of Ukraine at Tuesday's meeting" in Paris and "the good progress made on next steps."

They also emphasized that Russia's use of a medium-range ballistic missile, the Oreshnik, in western Ukraine is "escalatory and unacceptable."

Starmer said it was apparent that Russia "was using fabricated allegations to justify the attack" on Ukraine, after Moscow claimed it was responding to an alleged attack on one of Putin's residences.

The three leaders also discussed security in the context of Greenland, with Starmer stating that "the Nato alliance needed to step up in the region to deter adversaries such as Russia."

They also discussed the situation in Iran, stressing the need for close coordination of their actions in response to developments there.

As Ukrinform previously reported, Russia's Ministry of Defense said that on the night of January 9 a strike was carried out on Ukrainian territory, including with a medium-range ballistic missile, the Oreshnik. The Russian Defense Ministry described this as a response to an alleged attack on Putin's residence in Valdai on the night of December 29, 2025.

The Western Air Command of the Ukrainian Air Force reported that the ballistic missile used by the enemy to attack Lviv on January 8 was traveling at a speed of 13,000 kilometers per hour. The type of missile used will be determined after all its elements are examined.

According to Yurii Ihnat, head of the Communications Directorate of the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russia may have struck the Lviv region from the Kapustin Yar test range in Astrakhan region, where the Oreshnik system is reportedly based.

President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that information about strikes on Putin's Valdai residence is a fake invented by Russia to derail successful negotiations on ending the war.

Photo: dpa