A US official said Russia could launch another Oreshnik ballistic missile into Ukraine, after Kiev attacked its territory with ATACMS missiles.
“We assess that Oreshnik is not a factor that changes the situation on the battlefield, but is just another Russian attempt to put pressure on Ukraine, and this will certainly fail,” a US official said. today’s name said, citing US intelligence assessment.
According to this official, Russia will continue to launch ballistic missiles carrying Oreshnik hypersonic warheads into Ukraine “in the coming days”, seemingly in response to Ukraine’s raid on Russian territory today.
On December 11, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that Ukraine launched 6 ATACMS ballistic missiles at Taganrog military airport in the Rostov region, of which two were shot down by the Pantsir air defense system, the rest were “destroyed with electronic warfare”.
However, acting Governor of the Rostov region Yuri Slyusar said Ukrainian missiles hit the port of Taganrog, damaging an industrial facility and 14 vehicles.
“This attack by Western-made long-range missiles will certainly be responded to with appropriate measures,” the Russian Defense Ministry said, seemingly referring to the firing of Oreshnik missiles.
Oreshnik ballistic missile fragments were displayed in Ukraine on November 24. Image: AP
Russia launched its Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile for the first time into the city of Dnipro, Ukraine, on November 21, a move President Vladimir Putin considered a response to Ukraine’s first use of its ATACM ballistic missile. The US and Storm Shadow missiles provided by the UK attacked Russian territory after the West gave permission.
President Putin once said Russia could use Oreshnik again, including the ability to attack “brain centers” in Kiev, if Ukraine continues to attack Russia with Western long-range weapons.
He claimed the Oreshnik could not be intercepted and that it had the same destructive power as a nuclear weapon, even when equipped with a conventional warhead.
Some Western experts say the Oreshnik’s new feature is that it carries multiple warheads capable of attacking many different targets at the same time, which is common on longer-range intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). .
However, the unnamed US official downplayed the actual capabilities of the Oreshnik missiles, calling them “experimental” weapons in nature and saying that “Russia may only possess very few” of these missiles.
He also said Oreshnik carries a smaller warhead than other missiles Russia has deployed in Ukraine.
Washington said more US air defense equipment packages will be delivered to Ukraine in the near future.
The Ukraine conflict is entering what some Russian and Western officials say could be its final and most dangerous phase, as Russian forces are advancing at unprecedented speed.
US President-elect Donald Trump, who will take office next month, has pushed for a ceasefire and negotiations to end the fighting quickly, putting Washington’s long-term pledge of support for Kiev in doubt.