Russia is about to strike Ukraine with "unstoppable" weapons?

(Dan Tri) - Russia is said to be considering launching the Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile to attack targets in Ukraine this weekend, according to the Financial Times.

Russian missile system (Photo: Tass).

"On December 11, a US National Security Council official told the Financial Times that Moscow was considering a second strike with new missiles as early as this weekend," the Financial Times reported.

US officials said Russia wanted to use the new weapon to deter Ukraine and countries supporting Kiev, but Oreshnik "is not a game-changer on the battlefield".

"President Putin has publicly stated that Russia intends to launch another test Oreshnik missile into Ukraine and it is likely that Russia will do so in the coming days," the source revealed.

Earlier, the AP news agency reported that US intelligence believes that Russia could use the new Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile to attack Ukraine "in the coming days". Bloomberg also revealed this information.

In November, Russia launched Oreshnik missiles at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro in response to Kiev's attacks on Russia with Western long-range weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said shortly afterwards that this was a new generation of medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile tested in combat conditions. This missile has a speed of 10 times the speed of sound, making it almost impossible to intercept.

The Oreshnik is capable of carrying multiple warheads, including both conventional and nuclear warheads, he added. Although it is not a weapon of mass destruction, the Oreshnik is still capable of causing massive destruction without using nuclear power.

"Anything that is in the center of the attack is obliterated into elemental particles, turned into ashes," Putin stressed.

The Kremlin chief warned that the Oreshnik system could be used in retaliation against decision-making centers in Kiev if Ukraine continued long-range missile attacks on Russia.

Russian sources say the Oreshnik missile has a range of up to 5,000km, allowing Russia to strike most of Europe and the west coast of the US. Military analyst Vladislav Shurygin said the Oreshnik is capable of overcoming any existing advanced missile defense systems.

Russia's use of a new missile system against Ukraine appears to be intended to send a strategic message after Kiev used Western missiles to attack Russian territory.

Chairwoman of the Russian Federation Council (Upper House) Valentina Matviyenko stressed that the West has certainly received the message from the Oreshnik launch and President Putin's statements.

President Putin said the deployment of the Oreshnik missile system would reduce the need for nuclear weapons to a minimum.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/nga-sap-giang-don-vao-ukraine-bang-vu-khi-khong-the-danh-chan-20241214093056545.htm