Russia Deploys 9M729 “Screwdriver” Missile in Ukraine — First Combat Use of INF-Banned Weapon Sparks Global Alarm

(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) — In a significant escalation of the ongoing war in Ukraine, Russian forces have reportedly begun deploying the 9M729 cruise missile — a weapon system that has long stood at the heart of international arms-control disputes.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha revealed that Russia has used this ground-launched cruise missile in multiple attacks on Ukrainian targets over recent months.

This marks the first confirmed combat use of the 9M729, known to NATO as the SSC-8 “Screwdriver,” in Ukraine or any other conflict worldwide.

The missile’s battlefield debut revives memories of the 2019 collapse of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, the landmark Cold War-era accord abandoned by Washington over Russia’s alleged violations involving this very system.

Its use now transforms what was once an arms-control controversy into a real combat capability, signaling a decisive shift in Moscow’s military strategy and its willingness to employ weapons previously considered off-limits.

For defence analysts, the deployment underscores not only Russia’s readiness to exploit its long-range strike capability but also the end of the restraint that once defined Europe’s missile balance under the INF framework.

It also raises alarm in NATO capitals that Moscow is using Ukraine as a testing ground for reintroducing intermediate-range missiles into European theatres of war.

The missile’s reappearance on the battlefield demonstrates that Russia is openly discarding arms-control limitations in pursuit of strategic and psychological superiority.

It tells the world that Moscow is willing to rearm, reassert, and reconfigure its deterrence posture, even at the risk of triggering a renewed global arms race.

DEPLOYMENT IN THE UKRAINE CONFLICT

The first indications of the 9M729’s use surfaced in late 2025, amid an intensified wave of Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian energy and logistics infrastructure.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha confirmed that the system was employed, describing the launches as “a blatant display of Vladimir Putin’s disregard for international norms and peace efforts.”

According to senior Ukrainian defence officials, the first documented launches occurred on 21 August 2025, with 23 confirmed strikes by the end of October.

Two earlier instances of use were recorded in 2022, although details of those attacks remain limited.

A significant strike took place on 5 October 2025, when a missile believed to be a 9M729 travelled more than 1,200 kilometres before striking near Lviv in western Ukraine — a region far from any front-line combat zone.

Debris recovered from the site near the village of Lapaiivka in the Lviv region bore distinctive structural and mechanical characteristics matching the 9M729’s design, including its unique engine casing and control surfaces.

Independent munitions experts verified that these components were consistent with the missile’s configuration, confirming Kyiv’s assessment.

The missile’s use against targets so deep within Ukraine demonstrates its ability to strike strategic nodes and civilian areas well beyond the reach of most Russian short-range systems.

Ukrainian intelligence sources also allege that Moscow has ordered an additional batch of 95 9M729 missiles for integration with the Iskander-M launcher system, signalling sustained production and deployment plans.

This expansion will allow Russian forces to conduct precision strikes from deep inside Russia or Belarus, placing virtually all of Ukraine within engagement range.

The missile’s low-altitude flight profile, high manoeuvrability, and radar-evading design make interception difficult, even for advanced systems such as Patriot and NASAMS.

These characteristics enable Russia to conduct surprise attacks with minimal warning, targeting energy grids, transport hubs, and command centres.

Despite mounting evidence, the Kremlin has maintained official silence on the matter, continuing its pattern of deliberate ambiguity designed to complicate international attribution and response.

Kyiv’s debris-based proof, coupled with independent analysis, leaves little doubt that Russia has crossed another threshold in its missile warfare campaign.

The 9M729’s introduction to the conflict demonstrates that Moscow’s operational priorities now include testing and validating long-range systems once restricted under international arms-control frameworks.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS AND MILITARY CAPABILITIES

The 9M729, developed by Russia’s NPO Novator design bureau, represents an advanced land-attack cruise missile capable of both conventional and nuclear payload delivery.

It is part of the Iskander-K missile complex, a cruise-missile variant of the broader Iskander system, which traditionally employs ballistic missiles under the Iskander-M configuration.

The 9M729 is derived from the naval 3M-14 Kalibr missile, redesigned for ground-based launching — an adaptation that directly violated the INF Treaty’s ban on land-launched systems within the 500–5,500 kilometre range bracket.

Its elongated airframe provides additional space for fuel, extending its operational range far beyond the 500-kilometre limit imposed by the treaty.

Western assessments place the missile’s effective range between 2,000 and 2,500 kilometres, while Russian officials continue to insist it remains below 500 kilometres to avoid admission of non-compliance.

The missile travels at subsonic speeds — approximately Mach 0.8, or around 980 kilometres per hour — and maintains a terrain-hugging altitude to evade radar coverage.

This combination of speed and stealth makes it highly resistant to interception by most short- and medium-range air-defence systems.

The 9M729 carries a 500-kilogram warhead that can be fitted with either a conventional high-explosive charge or a low-yield nuclear device, making it a dual-capable strategic asset.

Guidance is achieved through an integrated system combining inertial navigation, Russia’s GLONASS satellite network, and terrain contour matching for terminal accuracy.

The missile’s circular error probable (CEP) is believed to be under 10 metres, giving it near-precision-strike capability against fixed targets such as air bases, power stations, and command nodes.

Each Iskander-K launcher can carry four 9M729 missiles — twice the load capacity of its ballistic counterpart — and can be relocated quickly due to its road-mobile configuration.

This mobility allows Russian units to launch, relocate, and conceal themselves before counter-battery fire or airstrikes can respond.

Development began in the mid-2000s, with initial testing reported as early as 2008 and operational fielding achieved by 2017.

By 2018, Western intelligence had confirmed that at least two battalions equipped with 9M729 launchers were active within the Russian Ground Forces, each comprising four launch vehicles and accompanying support units.

Technical analyses from Western research institutes have concluded that the missile’s range expansion was intentional, granting Russia a strike capability capable of reaching European capitals from within its own territory.

This capability effectively reintroduces a class of weapon once eliminated under the INF Treaty — transforming Russia’s tactical arsenal into a continental strategic deterrent.

TECHNICAL DATA PANEL: 9M729 (SSC-8 “Screwdriver”)

Parameter	Specification
Designation (NATO)	SSC-8 “Screwdriver”
Russian Designation	9M729
Developer	NPO Novator
Missile Type	Ground-launched cruise missile (land-attack)
Range	2,000–2,500 km (Western estimate)
Speed	Mach 0.8 (~980 km/h)
Warhead	500 kg (HE or nuclear)
Guidance System	Inertial + GLONASS + terrain contour matching
Launcher	Iskander-K road-mobile TEL (4 missiles per unit)
Flight Profile	Low altitude (terrain-following) for radar evasion
Estimated Unit Cost	USD 5–7 million (~RM 23–33 million)
Operational Status	Active in Russian Ground Forces (as of 2025)

 

FROM ARMS-CONTROL COLLAPSE TO BATTLEFIELD REALITY

The 9M729’s emergence on the battlefield cannot be separated from the broader story of the INF Treaty’s demise.

The treaty, signed in 1987 by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, eliminated an entire category of land-based missiles in Europe to prevent accidental nuclear escalation.

By the early 2010s, U.S. intelligence agencies detected Russian testing activities suggesting treaty violations.

In 2014, Washington formally accused Moscow of breaching the agreement.

By 2017, the United States publicly identified the 9M729 as the system in question, citing evidence of deployment at testing grounds such as Kapustin Yar.

Moscow denied all allegations, claiming the missile’s range was within legal limits and even showcasing a mock-up in 2019 to reinforce its stance.

However, NATO allies, including Germany, the United Kingdom, and Poland, confirmed U.S. assessments, leading to a collective condemnation of Russia’s actions.

In February 2019, the United States withdrew from the treaty, citing the 9M729’s continued development and deployment as the principal reason.

Russia responded by withdrawing as well, effectively ending the treaty and its verification mechanisms.

Although Moscow announced a self-imposed moratorium on deploying such missiles, intelligence reports indicated continued production and testing.

By August 2025, the Kremlin officially abandoned the moratorium, citing U.S. deployments of intermediate-range systems in Europe as justification.

This sequence of events directly paved the way for the 9M729’s operational debut in Ukraine.

In essence, a diplomatic crisis that began a decade ago has evolved into a tangible military capability now reshaping the battlefield in Eastern Europe.

The missile, once symbolic of broken trust between Moscow and Washington, now serves as a weapon of coercion against Ukraine and a tool of intimidation for NATO’s eastern members.

STRATEGIC AND GEOPOLITICAL IMPLICATIONS

The combat use of the 9M729 dramatically alters the strategic landscape of the Ukraine war and the wider European security environment.

For Russia, the missile offers a stand-off precision-strike option that reduces risk to its aircraft and launch crews while expanding its operational reach deep into Ukrainian territory.

It provides Moscow with a flexible escalation tool that can be employed without crossing the nuclear threshold — yet still deliver psychological and strategic impact.

For Ukraine, the introduction of this missile stretches already overburdened air-defence systems and complicates its ability to protect rear-area cities and infrastructure.

It may also accelerate Kyiv’s push to acquire additional long-range strike weapons, such as U.S. ATACMS and European Storm Shadow or Taurus missiles.

Across Europe, the deployment underscores the end of the post-Cold War era of missile restraint.

NATO officials are likely to respond by strengthening air-defence coverage, upgrading radar networks, and deploying new interceptors capable of detecting low-altitude cruise missiles.

The United States has already initiated development of its own ground-launched intermediate-range systems, including the Typhon launcher, which could soon be positioned in Europe or Asia.

Economically, the 9M729’s continued production will strain Russia’s sanctions-battered defence industry, but the missile’s deterrent value ensures its prioritisation in Moscow’s procurement plans.

Doctrinally, its deployment reflects Russia’s evolving philosophy of integrated deterrence — using high-precision conventional weapons as instruments of both warfare and strategic signalling.

“This gives them slightly different attack axes, which is difficult for air defences, and it increases the pool of missiles that are available to the Russians,” noted one Western analyst, encapsulating NATO’s growing concern.

For Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, the resurgence of unrestricted intermediate-range missile competition carries far-reaching implications.

It signals that long-range, land-based strike systems are returning to prominence in global arsenals, prompting regional militaries to reconsider their own deterrence and missile-defence strategies.

The 9M729’s use in Ukraine thus marks more than a tactical evolution — it is a strategic declaration that the world has entered a new era of missile warfare unconstrained by Cold War-era treaties.

CONCLUSION

Russia’s deployment of the 9M729 in Ukraine represents a turning point in modern warfare, where long-standing arms-control taboos have given way to battlefield pragmatism.

The missile’s combination of range, precision, and dual-use capability elevates it from a mere technical development to a symbol of shifting geopolitical realities.

It demonstrates how the dissolution of treaties like the INF has not only eroded global stability but also provided Moscow with a new arsenal for coercion and escalation.

From its origins in arms-control controversy to its confirmed combat role, the 9M729 epitomises the intersection of military innovation and strategic opportunism.

Its use underscores that the era of treaty-bound missile restraint has ended — and that the next phase of global military competition will be defined by the unrestrained proliferation of long-range strike systems. — DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA