TOKYO, November 22. /TASS/. The government of Japan refrained from commenting on Russia’s use of its new Oreshnik intermediate-range hypersonic missile against a Ukrainian defense production site during a regular briefing by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi.

"We would like to refrain from commenting on isolated cases related to the situation on the battlefield," he said.

At the same time, he once again criticized Russia’s actions in Ukraine, adding that the Japanese government would "continue to closely follow the developments on the battlefield."

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered a televised address to the nation on November 21, announcing that in response to the West’s decision to authorize strategic-depth strikes on Russia, Moscow used its new Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile for the first time. The missile, which struck a defense production site in Dnepr (formerly Dnepropetrovsk), was fitted with a conventional warhead, but is designed to carry a nuclear charge as well.

In the president’s words, Oreshnik attacks targets at a speed of Mach 10, or 2.5-3 kilometers per second. Modern air defense systems and missile defense systems deployed by the Americans in Europe cannot intercept such missiles, he added.