Ukraine will try to shoot down Oreshnik missile with available means – media

The Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine may try to shoot down Russian Kedr ballistic missiles with available means. There is a chance to do so after the missiles break up into six warheads.

It is these individual units that can theoretically be shot down. This was reported by NV, citing sources in the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

It is known that the Russian missile system "Kedr" (or "Oreshnik" as Russian dictator Vladimir Putin called it) is a fairly recent development of the Russian defense industry. However, it is not a product of "the latest technology," as the Kremlin leader assured, but a modernization of Soviet equipment.

"The Kedr is not an intercontinental missile, but it can still be a nuclear weapon.

And, again, despite Putin's claims, this missile is not so invulnerable.

"When the missile is gaining altitude, the main warheads are separated into 6 warheads. Currently, it may be difficult for Ukraine to shoot down such missiles. The most likely way to defeat them would be to shoot down the individual warheads rather than the entire missile," the publication noted.

The Air Force can try to do this even with existing means. However, according to NV sources, Ukraine is already negotiating with the United States to obtain weapons capable of shooting down intercontinental missiles. These could be modernized Patriot missile defense systems or the American Aegis or THAAD missile defense systems.

The Defense Forces share the opinion of experts that Russia used the Kedr to strike the Dnipro River on November 21 to intimidate Ukrainians and Europeans with the possibility of a direct nuclear strike.

"Also, NV's interlocutor in the security and defense sector believes that the strike with such a missile could have been aimed at persuading the United States to negotiate an end to the war," the report said.

Although the missile did not have a nuclear warhead during its first use, the source does not rule out that Russia may continue to blackmail with tactical nuclear weapons in the future. However, the transition from threats to their implementation, according to NV's source, will be "the Kremlin's biggest mistake, which will ultimately lead to his defeat."

As a reminder, on November 21, Russia fired missiles from Tu-95MS and an intercontinental ballistic missile down the Dnipro River at Ukraine. The combined massive attack on the city's enterprises and critical infrastructure lasted from 5 to 7 am.

According to the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russian troops launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from Astrakhan region of the Russian Federation, an X-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile from a MiG-31K fighter jet in Tambov region, and seven X-101 cruise missiles from Tu-95MS strategic bombers (launch area – Volgograd region).

"As a result of the anti-aircraft combat, the units of the Air Force anti-aircraft missile forces destroyed six X-101 missiles. The other missiles were destroyed without any significant consequences," the Air Force said.

The moment of the Russian attack on Dnipro with an intercontinental ballistic missile was caught on video.

According to the DIU, the missile's approach time to the Dnipro was 15 minutes.

According to the deputy head of the DIU, Major General Vadym Skibitskyi, Russia probably has up to 10 Oreshnik missiles, and that it may test-fire all of them in the future. The same day, November 22, his superior, Budanov, stated that as of October, the Russians had planned to produce two such missiles.

On the evening of the attack, Putin issued a statement to Russians. In particular, he said that Russia had used "one of its newest Russian medium-range ballistic missile systems with a non-nuclear hypersonic ballistic missile, the Oreshnik, to strike the industrial complex in Dnipro. The dictator added that the world allegedly has no means of countering Russia's Oreshnik.

Putin called the use of an intercontinental ballistic missile on a Ukrainian city "a response to the strikes by American and British weapons on Russian territory" and announced the start of mass production of these missiles.

However, the very next day, a part from the Oreshnik found in the Dnipro exposed the Kremlin's lies.

Western media began to calculate the time of the Oreshnik missile's approach to EU capitals. Given that, according to the American Institute for the Study of War, Putin wants to intimidate the West and Ukraine with this missile, his plan was partially successful.

Meanwhile, OBOZ.UA has shown what the village of Kapustyn Yar looks like, from the range named after which missiles are launched at $10 million each.

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