The Oreshnik hypersonic missile, capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and with a range of more than 5,000 kilometers, covers the entire territory of Europe.
Vladimir Putin announced on Friday that Russia has begun production of a new type of hypersonic missile and that these missiles will be deployed in Belarus before the end of this year.
The Russian president made these remarks while accompanying Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on an island near St. Petersburg. He noted: “The first batch of operational Oreshnik missiles has been produced.” “Oreshnik ” means “hazel tree” in Russian.
Russia first used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine in November, targeting a factory that had been producing missiles in Ukraine since the Soviet era.
Praising the capabilities of the Oreshnik, Putin said: “The missile’s multiple warheads, which dive toward the target at speeds of up to Mach 10, are impossible to intercept. It is so powerful that firing several of them in a conventional attack could be as devastating as a nuclear strike.”
The Russian president warned that Moscow might use this missile against Ukraine’s Western allies, referring to countries that have allowed Kyiv to use their missiles to strike deep into Russian territory.
The Oreshnik missile can carry a nuclear warhead, and with a range of 5,500 kilometers, it can cover the entirety of Europe. The production of such weapons had been banned under a Soviet-era treaty, but Washington and Moscow abandoned it in 2019.
Last fall, Putin and Lukashenko signed an agreement under which Moscow provided security guarantees to support Belarus, including the use of nuclear weapons to repel any aggression against Belarus. This pact was concluded after the Kremlin revised its nuclear doctrine and, for the first time, placed Belarus under its nuclear support.
Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus for over 30 years, is heavily dependent on the Kremlin’s economic and security assistance. In 2022, he allowed Russia to use Belarusian territory to deploy troops to Ukraine. Russia has stationed a number of its tactical nuclear warheads in Belarus. Although the exact number has not been officially disclosed, Lukashenko stated in December that his country is currently hosting dozens of nuclear warheads.
The deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which shares a border of over 1,000 kilometers with Ukraine, makes it easier for Russian aircraft and missiles to target NATO allies in Eastern and Central Europe.
By revising Russia’s nuclear doctrine, Putin has officially lowered the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons. Under the new doctrine, Moscow can employ unconventional and nuclear weapons even in response to conventional attacks in war.