Direct proof of use
Ballistic missiles are documented in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War through Russian Iskander-family strikes during the full-scale invasion period. RUSI assessed that the main portion of Russia's strategic and some operational fires until early April 2022 was performed by 9M720 and 9M723 Iskander short-range ballistic missile systems, recording more than 200 strikes by the system from February to early May 2022.
Specific incident evidence continued after the opening phase. OHCHR reported that the October 5, 2023 strike on a funeral reception in Hroza, Kharkiv region, was likely carried out by a Russian Iskander missile. Human Rights Watch later verified imagery and remnants from the April 29, 2024 Odesa Legal Academy attack, identifying a 9M723 ballistic missile remnant and reporting that the missile carried a cluster munition warhead.
Sources: RUSI Preliminary Lessons, OHCHR Hroza Report, HRW Odesa Cluster Munition Attack
Timeline
The opening months of the full-scale invasion provide the clearest campaign-level evidence. RUSI recorded more than 200 Iskander-system strikes from February to early May 2022, with targets deep inside Ukraine and near the Polish border.
The Hroza and Odesa cases show later documented ballistic-missile use in 2023 and 2024. OHCHR attributed the Hroza weapon type as likely Iskander, while HRW's Odesa investigation tied physical remnants to the 9M723 missile and described a cluster-warhead attack.
Sources: RUSI Preliminary Lessons, OHCHR Hroza Report, HRW Odesa Cluster Munition Attack
Operational role
In this catalog entry, the ballistic-missile role is long-range strike rather than front-line direct fire. IISS describes Russia's principal ground-launched short-range ballistic missile as the 9K720 Iskander-M complex, whose 9M723 missile is road-mobile and carries a 480-700 kilogram warhead. CSIS describes the Iskander as a road-mobile short-range ballistic missile with a range up to 500 kilometers, fired from a transporter-erector-launcher that can also support related cruise missiles.
The sources distinguish direct use from broader possession. Russia possessed and fielded Iskander-M before the full-scale invasion, but the conflict-use record here depends on sources documenting launches, strikes, remnants, or aggregated strike data in Ukraine.
Sources: IISS Ballistic and Cruise Trajectories, CSIS 9K720 Iskander, RUSI Preliminary Lessons, CSIS Russian Firepower Strike Tracker
Evidence limits
Open sources often group Russian missile attacks by family or launch system. Iskander launchers can fire ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, and Ukrainian daily strike reports sometimes group Iskander-M ballistic missiles with other ballistic threats such as S-300/S-400 used in a ground-attack mode. This page treats ballistic-missile use as established where sources identify Iskander-M/9M723, Iskander ballistic missiles, or short-range ballistic missile use in Ukraine.
The record does not treat every Russian missile strike as ballistic-missile use. Cruise missiles, one-way attack drones, air-launched missiles, and surface-to-air missiles used against ground targets are separate weapon categories unless a cited source directly identifies a ballistic missile or ballistic-missile system.
Sources: CSIS Russian Firepower Strike Tracker, IISS Ballistic and Cruise Trajectories, CSIS 9K720 Iskander
