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Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow

President claims attack hit oil and logistics facilities, resulting in billions of dollars in war support.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published

What this story says

  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine used cruise missiles, including the Flamingo, and new ballistic missiles, including the Pelican (FP-7), in an attack on the Moscow region.
  • Zelensky claimed the attack hit a major Russian oil industry facility and a logistics center, resulting in billions of dollars supporting the war effort.
  • Several outlets reported this was the first time the Pelican ballistic missile had been used in an attack on Moscow.
  • Russian authorities claimed to have intercepted over 450 drones targeting Moscow, though Mayor Sergei Sobyanin acknowledged some reached the Moscow refinery and one damaged a residential building.

Who covered it

Left 0%(0)Centre 43%(3)Right 57%(4)

Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 13 of the 20 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

42/100

Craft

57/100

Hype

41/100

20 sources · methodology

Thin on the left so far

None of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.

This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine had deployed cruise and new ballistic missiles in an attack on the Moscow region. He identified the missiles used as the Flamingo cruise missile and the Pelican (FP-7) ballistic missile. Zelensky stated that the strikes targeted a significant Russian oil industry facility and a logistics center, which he claimed would impact billions of dollars supporting Russia's war effort.

Multiple reports indicated that this was the first instance of the Pelican ballistic missile being used in an attack on Moscow. The operation involved several Ukrainian defense and intelligence agencies, according to ZN.UA. Russian authorities reported intercepting over 450 drones aimed at Moscow. However, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin confirmed that some drones reached the Moscow refinery and that one drone damaged a residential building.

Disagreement on missile details

While President Zelensky identified the Pelican as a new ballistic missile used in the attack, ZN.UA also listed other potential weapons used, including FP-1, RZ-100, MICH-2000, "Palatinate", Vendetta, "Lute", "Bars", "Flamingo", and "Sichny". The reports do not clarify if these were all distinct missile types or variations.

What the coverage left out

None of the reports printed below mention the specific figure of billions of dollars that President Zelensky claimed would be impacted in supporting the war effort. The reports also do not detail the extent of the damage to the oil industry facility or the logistics center beyond Zelensky's claims.

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 20 Sept 2026, 13:00, and will add the sides that appear.

How other outlets pictured it

Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.

Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow
ZN.UA Зеркало неделиCentre

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

0 rated outlets

No outlet rated left has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.

Centre

3 rated outlets

  • The centre-rated reports from ANSA and ZN.UA both led with President Zelensky's announcement of the use of cruise and ballistic missiles, including the Pelican, in the attack on Moscow. Both outlets detailed Zelensky's claims that the strikes hit a major Russian oil industry facility and a logistics center, impacting billions of dollars supporting the war effort. ZN.UA also provided specific details about the operation, noting the involvement of multiple Ukrainian defense and intelligence agencies and mentioning the potential use of various missile types. ZN.UA also reported on the Russian authorities' claims regarding drone interceptions and damage to the Moscow refinery and a residential building.

Right

4 rated outlets

  • The right-rated reports from EADaily, topwar.ru, Korrespondent.net, and news-pravda.com focused on President Zelensky's statement regarding the use of the Pelican rocket. EADaily and topwar.ru highlighted that this was the first time the Pelican rocket was used in an attack on Moscow. Korrespondent.net stated that Zelensky revealed details of the attack. News-pravda.com quoted Zelensky directly, stating that Ukraine had fired an FP-7 Pelican ballistic missile at Moscow and noted its development based on S-300 family missiles.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow?
Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 0% are rated left, 43% are rated centre, 57% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 20. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow left or right?
Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
Is the coverage of Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow biased?
Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow is one event reported by 20 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered Zelensky says Ukraine used new ballistic missiles on Moscow?
20 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What did Ukraine use in the attack on Moscow?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine used cruise missiles, including the Flamingo, and new ballistic missiles, including the Pelican (FP-7), in an attack on the Moscow region. Several reports indicated this was the first use of the Pelican ballistic missile in an attack on Moscow.
What targets did Ukraine claim to hit in Moscow?
President Zelensky claimed that the attack hit a major Russian oil industry facility and a logistics center. He stated that these strikes would impact billions of dollars supporting Russia's war effort.
What did Russian authorities say about the attack?
Russian authorities claimed to have intercepted over 450 drones targeting Moscow. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin acknowledged that some drones reached the Moscow refinery and one damaged a residential building.

Read it at the source

20 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

Centre

3

Right

4

Not rated

13
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How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

Zelensky on Ukraine's Moscow attack | MediaBias News