U.S. Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley said the Russians‘ use of hypersonic weapons in Ukraine is not having “really significant effects”.

He spoke about this during a House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing.

CNN writes.

“Other than the speed of the weapon, in terms of its effect on a given target, we are not seeing really significant or game-changing effects,” Milley said.

The United States also said that Russia had launched between 10 and 12 hypersonic missiles against Ukraine so far.

Milley confirmed this was the first case hypersonic weapons had ever been used in combat, and he said that the Pentagon has analyzed each hypersonic strike. He added that he could only elaborate on the details in a classified session.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that he agreed with Milley, and he did not think that use of hypersonics would “cause him (Putin – Ed.) to be willing to elevate it to use nuclear weapons.”

“I think he’s trying to create a specific effect with the use of that weapon. And as the chairman has pointed out, it moves at a speed that makes it very difficult to interdict. But it hasn’t been a game-changer,” the Pentagon chief said.

This was in regards to the use of the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal missile by the Russians.

The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal is a Russian nuclear-capable hypersonic aero-ballistic air-to-surface missile. Declared speed – 10 Mach. Adopted in 2017. Structurally similar to Iskander short range ballistic missiles. The carrier is the MiG-31.

One of the episodes of the use of the Kinzhal missile in Ukraine was the shelling of an ammunition depot in the Ivano-Frankivsk region in March 2022.

Read the analysis of Russia’s hypersonic threats here.