When Russia may strike Ukraine again with Oreshnik: Expert names dangerous date
Russia may launch a new massive strike on Ukraine on December 18. The enemy will likely use the medium-range ballistic missile Oreshnik, states military expert and former spokesperson of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Vladyslav Seleznov, in a comment to the RBC-Ukraine YouTube channel.
"We should not live in illusions. Putin will continue to kill civilians in our country. Putin will continue to try to destroy our energy infrastructure. But he has been doing this for almost three years now, and the results of such actions are not very effective," said Seleznov.
According to the expert, he was confident that today, during the climax of the large-scale missile and drone attack, the Russian forces would use the Oreshnik. However, this did not happen.
"What is this connected to? Could it be that the clumsy RS-26 failed to launch, or perhaps other reasons prompted the enemy not to use the Oreshnik? But that does not mean it won't happen in the next few days," Seleznov noted.
According to him, the Russian army may strike Ukraine on December 18.
"Monitoring resources suggest that the next window when the enemy will close the Kapustin Yar test site is expected to be on December 18. Therefore, we should not ignore the air raid alerts," emphasized the expert.
In his opinion, whether the enemy will use the RS-26 during the next large-scale missile and drone attack or not is purely a technical matter. As soon as the enemy missile forces are ready, they will take advantage of this factor.
"Another key indicator is the statements from the embassies of our Western partners, primarily the US embassy. If they announce another 'unpleasant day' or a day when all personnel will be in safe locations, I think we should focus on that date," Seleznov added.
US warning
On December 8, the US Embassy in Kyiv issued a warning about the increased threats from Russian missiles and drones. In this regard, US citizens were advised to monitor notifications from the Ukrainian government regarding air attacks.
Reuters, citing an unnamed source, reported that Russia may strike Ukraine in the coming days with an Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile. However, this is not expected to change the course of the war.
Later, the Pentagon stated that Russia could launch a strike on Ukraine with an Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile in the near future. However, the exact date of the possible attack is unknown.
Strike with the Oreshnik on Ukraine
On November 21, the Russian army launched a missile strike on Dnipro. The Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Russian forces fired an intercontinental ballistic missile at Ukraine for the first time.
Later, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the Russian army conducted a test launch of the Oreshnik medium-range missile system. However, the Defense Intelligence (GUR) clarified that the new missile was launched from the Kedr missile complex.
As explained by GUR head Kyrylo Budanov, it is essentially the same missile. Putin used the name of the Oreshnik missile program, but the missile launch system is called Kedr.
