Overview
- Russian forces included an Oreshnik medium‑range ballistic missile in a recent mass attack that also used hundreds of drones and scores of other missiles against targets in and near Kyiv.
- The Oreshnik is described as dual‑use and reported to be MIRV‑capable with an estimated range of roughly 3,000 to 5,500 kilometers, enough to reach much of Europe.
- The weapon travels at very high, hypersonic reentry speeds along a high‑altitude arc but is not a maneuverable hypersonic missile, a distinction that affects how it is tracked and intercepted.
- Ukrainian authorities and independent analysts say current Ukrainian radar and interceptor coverage cannot reliably detect or defeat the Oreshnik’s high‑altitude speed and multiple descending warheads, making interception effectively impractical.
- Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, say the missile is in production and service, but U.S. intelligence assesses the system as experimental and limited in number and unlikely by itself to change the course of the war while still deepening European deterrence and escalation dilemmas.