Russia boasts deployment of nuclear-capable missiles
Russia has released a video in which it says its nuclear-capable hypersonic Oreshnik missile system has been deployed in its close ally Belarus; this was a move aimed at increasing Moscow’s ability to strike targets across Europe in the event of war.
State news agency TASS said the Ministry of Defense demonstrated for the first time the Oreshnik mobile missile systems, which President Vladimir Putin said were impossible to intercept due to missile speeds reported to be more than 10 times the speed of sound.
The deployment, and Moscow’s announcement that the missiles have entered active service in a country that borders Ukraine and NATO members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, comes at a time of rising East-West tensions over Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The move would allow Russian nuclear missiles to reach European targets slightly faster in any war.
Some Western experts said the development underlined the Kremlin’s increasing reliance on the threat of nuclear weapons as it seeks to deter NATO members from supplying Ukraine with weapons that could strike deep into Russia.
Two US researchers said Moscow likely located the missiles and mobile launchers at a former air base in eastern Belarus, based on their study of satellite images.
The location of the missile systems was not disclosed in the video released by the Russian and Belarusian defense ministries on Tuesday. However, the images showed mobile launchers and their teams advancing on forest roads and expert troops camouflaging the systems with networks.
A senior Russian officer was filmed telling troops that the systems had been officially placed on combat duty and discussing regular training and reconnaissance routines for missile crews as light snow fell in the background.
Moscow tested a conventionally armed Oreshnik (russian hazel tree) against a target in Ukraine in November 2024.
Putin said Oreshnik’s destructive power was comparable to a nuclear weapon, even when fitted with a conventional warhead. Medium missiles have a range of up to 5,500 km, allowing them to attack from Russia anywhere in Europe or the western United States.
Some Western officials have expressed doubts about Oreshnik’s abilities. A US official said in December 2024 that the weapon was not seen as a game-changer on the battlefield.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a staunch ally of Putin who has also begun talks with US President Donald Trump’s administration, had already flagged the installation of the missiles.
He said no more than a dozen “Oreshniks” would be deployed; The defense minister said this step, which he called aggressive moves by Western rivals, was necessary.
Lukashenko allowed Russian troops to use his country to enter Ukraine in February 2022, but did not deploy Belarusian troops to fight alongside Moscow’s forces in Ukraine.
