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Russian President Vladimir Putin claims the ballistic missile strike on Ukraine on Thursday was the debut of a new ‘unstoppable’ weapon as he blamed the West for turning his invasion of Ukraine into a global war. Ukraine reported what it claimed as an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) strike on the central city of Dnipro on Thursday morning, prompting a flurry of global concern at what could be the first use of a true ICBM in anger in history. Yet Western governments and intelligence agencies were apparently reluctant to openly acknowledge the claim, Russia itself refused comment, and eventually even Ukraine itself cast doubts on its own assertions. Now Russia’s President Putin has given his own version of events, saying the strike was not by ICBM — weapons which travel into space before plunging back to earth, with ranges of thousands of miles — but rather by a never-before-seen nuclear-capable Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM). Putin identified as the ‘Oreshnik’ (‘Hazel’) type which he claimed is totally impervious to Western countermeasures in a televised speech on Thursday night. Separately, Putin ally and former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now a Kremlin attack dog frequently employed in making lurid nuclear threats, called the new missile “hypersonic” and published what purported to be footage of the strike. Such claims are difficult to take at face value, given the importance of propaganda in wartime and the fact President Putin’s television conferences are as much for domestic consumption and Russian morale as they are to inform foreign observers. Russia has also made bold claims about its new missile systems in the past, not least about its “hypersonics”. The Kinzhal missile was said to be so fast and maneuverable it was impossible to shoot down, however the makers of the United States Patriot missile shield system probably enjoyed a healthy bump in their order books from having shot down a number of them in the skies over Ukraine last year. Nevertheless, Putin was so bullish about the invulnerability of Oreshnik missiles, he offered a somewhat cynical reassurance to civilians he said he would even give public advance warnings of future launches. The Russian President said in his televised address on Thursday night, per Kremlin media: “We will do it due to humanitarian concerns – openly, publicly, without any concerns about any countermeasures from the enemy, who will also receive this information... Why without any concerns? Because there are currently no countermeasures for this weapon at this moment. Russia has no obligation to notify third parties about IRBM launches in advance, as it does with ICBMs, per a year 2000 memorandum signed with the United States to reduce the likelihood of tests and military exercises being misinterpreted as sneak attacks. The very term hypersonic is also somewhat problematic. Very much the subject of the zeitgeist in military thought and technology, the theoretical concept of a hypersonic missile is one that can maneuver rapidly to avoid enemy fire at extremely high speeds, over five times the speed of sound. While many missiles achieve such speeds, it is the evasive action at speed factor which seems to be basically unproven. Nevertheless, Russia has made its claims, not least that Oreshnik flies at mach-10, or 7,600 miles per hour. As well as discussing the alleged weapon itself, President Putin also spoke to what he claimed were his motives, blaming Western states backing Ukraine’s defence against his invasion. On this point he was quite explicit, stating the Dnipro attack was: “in response to the use of American and British long-range weapons”. Testing the new Oreshnik missile against a live target — a Ukrainian city — was a “response to the aggressive actions of NATO regarding Russia”, he said. By supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles — which have been used to strike inside Russia itself for the first time this week — President Putin said “the conflict in Ukraine, provoked by the West, has acquired elements of global nature”. While these remarks made no reflection on Russia’s culpability in the conflict, nevertheless it clearly underlined the Kremlin attitude that Western states were involving themselves in what they consider their own private war. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who had earlier in the day referred to Russia as his “insane neighbor” for firing ballistic missiles at his cities, was prompt in responding to President Putin’s speech. He said Russia had “escalated and expanded” the war again with the strike and compared it in magnitude to Russia deploying North Korean soldiers to fight against Ukraine. Zelensky rejected Russia’s pleading over Ukrainian missile strikes into their territory, saying it was no more or less than Russia already inflictys on Ukraine daily. He said: “Putin lies when he claims that Ukraine’s use of long-range weapons is somehow a new step for us. This is not the first time we have used such weapons, and we have every right to do so under international law. Our right to self-defense is the same as that of any other nation. “And when Russian missiles hit our cities, when Iranian “Shaheds” attack Ukraine every night, when a North Korean contingent is deployed on our borders, Putin is not only prolonging the war—he is spitting in the face of those in the world who genuinely want peace to be restored.”NoneWINDHOEK, Namibia (AP) — Namibia elected its first female leader as Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah was declared the winner Tuesday of a presidential election last week that was tarnished by technical glitches that caused a three-day extension to allow votes to be cast, and rejected as illegal by opposition parties. The 72-year-old Nandi-Ndaitwah won with 57% of the vote, defying predictions that she might be forced into a runoff. Her ruling SWAPO party also retained its parliamentary majority, although by a very thin margin, and extended its 34-year hold on power since the southern African country gained independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990. Namibia, a sparsely populated country of around 3 million on the southwestern coast of Africa, has a reputation for being one of the continent's more stable democracies and the problems around the election have caused consternation. Last Wednesday's vote was marred by shortages of ballot papers and other problems that led election officials to extend voting until Saturday. Opposition parties have said the extension is unconstitutional, and some have pledged to join together in a legal appeal to have the election invalidated. The Electoral Commission of Namibia, which ran the election, rejected opposition calls for a redo of the vote. It has undermined Nandi-Ndaitwah's place in history. She is set to become her country's fifth president since independence and a rare female leader in Africa. She was a member of Namibia's underground independence movement in the 1970s and received part of her higher education in the then-Soviet Union. She was promoted to vice president in February after President Hage Geingob died while in office . Nangolo Mbumba, who became president after Geingob's death, didn't run in the election. The ruling SWAPO party won 51 seats in the parliamentary vote, only just passing the 49 it needed to keep its majority and narrowly avoiding becoming another long-ruling party to be rejected in southern Africa this year. It was SWAPO's worst parliamentary election result. A mood of change has swept across the region, with parties that led their countries out of white minority or colonial rule in neighboring South Africa and Botswana both losing their long-held political dominance. South Africa's African National Congress, which freed the country from the racist system of apartheid, lost its 30-year majority in an election in May and had to form a coalition. Botswana's ruling party was stunningly removed in a landslide in October after governing for 58 years since independence from Britain. Mozambique's long-ruling Frelimo has been accused of rigging an October election and has faced weeks of violent protests against its rule. SWAPO faced similar challenges as those countries, with frustration at high unemployment and economic hardship, especially among young people, driving a desire for era-ending change. In a brief speech after the results were announced late Tuesday night, Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibians had voted for peace, stability and youth empowerment. “We are going to do what we promised you during the campaigns. Thank you for your confidence and trust in us," she said. Nandi-Ndaitwah was also due to address the nation on Wednesday morning. “SWAPO Wins. Netumbo Wins. Namibia Wins. Now Hard Work,” the ruling party posted on its official account on social media site X. Some opposition parties boycotted the announcement by the Electoral Commission of Namibia at its results center in the capital, Windhoek. The commission has been roundly criticized for its running of the vote, with many angry Namibians complaining they had to wait hours and sometimes over multiple days for the chance to vote. Just over 1 million votes were cast out of 1.4 million registered voters, according to the electoral commission. Panduleni Itula, the leading opposition candidate from the Independent Patriots for Change party, was second in the presidential election with 25% of the vote. His party won the second-largest number of seats in Parliament behind SWAPO. Itula and his party have led the criticism of the vote and said they will lodge their appeal against the election this week. Other opposition parties said they will join that legal challenge. Itula has said that thousands of voters may have been prevented from voting as only some polling stations allowed an extension. "This election has violated the very tenets of our Electoral Act. Namibians deserve the right to choose their leaders freely and fairly, not through a rigged process,” he said. Namibia is a former German colony that came under South African control after World War I and its Black majority was later subjected to some of South Africa’s apartheid policies. SWAPO was at the forefront of the battle for independence from South Africa. While the country has swaths of desert running through it, it has diamond and uranium resources and untapped oil and gas off its coast that is being explored by international companies and could make it a major producer of both. AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
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