Putin brings up Oreshnik missile again, promises it will go on combat duty this year
Photo: Russian president Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
Russian president Vladimir Putin has once again mentioned Russia's latest weaponry—the Oreshnik medium-range missile, according to Russian media.
Oreshnik is planned to be put on combat duty by the end of the year. Putin mentioned its first use: in November last year, the Russians struck Dnipro with Oreshnik.
“The high level of training of units and formations, their ability to solve the most difficult tasks, is confirmed during regular exercises. This includes the participation of our foreign allies and partners, to whom we transfer the experience gained during special military operation,” Putin said.
Russia struck Ukraine with an Oreshnik missile
Russia used an Oreshnik missile during a strike on Ukrainian territory. The attack took place on November 21 last year. The target was a defense plant in Dnipro. According to experts, Russian troops used a missile without a warhead at that time.
On September 30, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko publicly demonstrated a model of the Russian Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile for the first time. During his meeting with the Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan, a model of the launcher was spotted in the office.
Lukashenko stated that the Oreshnik complexes are planned to be deployed in Belarus by the end of the year. According to him, relevant agreements were reached with Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Volgograd. Back in September, he claimed that the missiles were allegedly already on their way to Belarus.
Oreshnik is likely a modification of the RS-26 Rubezh missile. According to unofficial data, its flight range can reach about 5,500 kilometers, but there is little information about this missile in open sources.
