A Russian nuclear warhead could hit London just nine minutes after launch, a television presenter has claimed.
Vladimir Solovyov had been discussing the terrifying capabilities of the air-launched hypersonic Kinzhal missiles.
During the talk he said its massive speed means it would reach the UK in under ten minutes - when it would be “goodbye London”.
The chat was shared on Twitter, according to the Daily Star.
He said: “Everybody there is getting hysterical today because it can get to London from Belarus in nine minutes.
“The Killjoy missile also known as Kinzhal has a range of over 2,000 km and can reach a speed 12 times the speed of sound, nine minutes and 'hello London!' or rather 'hello and goodbye London!'"
Capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal is claimed by the Missile Defense Project to have a range of 2,000km.
It was unveiled by the Kremlin in 2018.
Should Valadimir Putin decide to fire a missile armed with a thermonuclear device onboard he will hope it goes better than in September when one of them crash landed.
Russian military leaders were left red-faced when footage appeared to show the burning remains of the missile dubbed “dagger” when it came down over Stavropol Krai, in Russia's North Caucasus region, on Wednesday.
Eight people were injured when it crashed.
A statement from the Ukraine army said at the time: “Unflyable weather today for hypersonic missiles.
“This is the place where the 'Kinzhal' missile fell. It was probably flying from the Caspian Sea to Ukraine.”
Earlier today Putin raised eyebrows when he referenced the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear attacks in a conversation with French president Emmanuel Macron .
There have been ongoing fears the Russia president will resort to a nuclear attack on Ukraine .
Those concerns have escalated in recent months as Russia's invasion has been dealt a series of major setbacks.
Diplomatic sources say Putin claimed the bombings – which prompted Japan to surrender at the end of the Second World War – showed is wasn't necessary to attack a major city “in order to win”.
The United States killed over 350,000 people – mainly civilians – when it detonated two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.
The Daily Mail reported sources claimed Putin had told Macron the attacks on Japan 67 years ago showed “you don’t need to attack the major cities in order to win”.
The source added: “Macron was distinctly alarmed. It sounded like a very heavy hint that Putin might detonate a tactical nuclear weapon in the east of Ukraine, while leaving Kyiv intact.
“That appeared to be the thrust of his remarks.”
