Russia to deploy Oreshnik missile system in Belarus by year’s end, says top official

"The Oreshnik missile system is planned to be stationed in Belarus by the end of this year. The locations for its deployment have already been determined," Volfovich said.

According to him, the issue of deploying the Russian missile system will move into a practical phase by the end of 2025.

"Work is underway. Claims by some Ukrainian officials and other leaders that this is just a bluff, that none of this is real… let them keep living in hope," said the Belarusian Security Council Secretary.

Deployment of the Oreshnik in Belarus

On November 21, 2024, Russia used the Oreshnik missile for the first time during its full-scale war against Ukraine, targeting the city of Dnipro. After the strike, Russian leader Vladimir Putin confirmed the missile had undergone testing.

Later, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko asked Vladimir Putin to deploy the Oreshnik missile system on Belarusian territory. The Russian President promised to do so in 2025.

Since then, Lukashenko has repeatedly claimed that the Oreshnik would be stationed in Belarus any day.

However, Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation called these reports an attempt to intimidate. The head of the center, Andriy Kovalenko, also stated that claims about reduced missile flight time are part of Russia's information warfare.

Additionally, President Lukashenko previously said that Belarus is working on producing launchers for the Oreshnik system, but full deployment requires missiles to be supplied from Russia.

According to the Belarusian President, the country is "practically completing" the production of several Oreshnik launchers.

Meanwhile, the head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, Oleh Ivashchenko, reported that Belarus has not received nuclear weapons from Russia.

He noted that Belarus is preparing storage facilities and actively getting ready for the possible deployment of nuclear arms.