NYT uncovers likely specs of Russian Oreshnik missile
Photo: Russian dictator Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
Russia's new Oreshnik missile is capable of carrying nuclear weapons. However, it is not yet known what kind of explosives, if any, the missile used to hit the Dnipro, The New York Times reports.
According to the agency, the United States believes that the Oreshnik is a modification of the Russian intercontinental ballistic missile RS-26 Rubezh, which has been tested since 2011.
According to Timothy Wright, an expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the name Oreshnik is likely a reference to submunitions that resemble clusters of hazelnuts.
“This system has been in development for a while,” said Jeffrey Lewis, a nonproliferation expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
At the same time, Wright noted that there are some physical differences between the Oreshnik and Rubezh missile systems. The debris from the impact site indicates that the Oreshnik measures about 92 cm in circumference, while the Rubezh measures 1 m 83 cm.
This is likely due to the fact that the Oreshnik is designed to fly shorter distances than the Rubezh. After all, the Rubezh can reach a target anywhere on Earth, while the Oreshnik can fly about 3,410 miles. Even this distance will allow it to reach most of Europe.
Nick Brown, an analyst at Janes, a British company specializing in defense intelligence, said that the Oreshnik is the longest-range weapon ever used in conflicts in Europe.
Experts also believe that Rubezh can carry up to 4 warheads. And the Oreshnik, for the attack on the Dnipro, carried 6 warheads, each consisting of 6 submunitions.
Russian strike on Dnipro
Last week, Russians struck Dnipro with a medium-range ballistic missile.
Putin claimed it was Russia's latest missile, which he called the Oreshnik. In his statements, he also threatened to strike strategic targets in the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.
According to the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, the name Oreshnik is only a designation of the research program under which this weapon was developed. The missile itself is known as Kedr.
Read more about the new Russian weapon in RBC-Ukraine's article.
