The Oreshnik hypersonic missile, which has been successfully combat-tested earlier, has been officially commissioned to the Russian Armed Forces, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during the meeting with the Defense Ministry board, representatives of the military-industrial complex and missile weapon designers in the Kremlin, TASS reports.
The head of state thanked the missile’s developers, congratulated them with their success and informed them that they will be honored with state awards. He also disclosed that several new systems of this kind are currently in the works for further testing.
The Oreshnik is not an upgraded version of previous versions dating back from the Soviet times; it is in the line of the latest and modern developments.
"We do have a stockpile of such products, such systems, which are ready to be used," Putin said.
The Oreshnik is another reliable guarantor of Russia’s territorial integrity, he noted, adding that the recent combat test of the missile was successful.
"We will continue these trials, including in combat environment, depending on the situation and security threats to Russia," Putin said.
No one in the world can boast of having such a missile system as Russia’s Oreshnik: "Yes, it will appear in other leading countries sooner or later. We know what kind of developments are being carried out there, but this will happen tomorrow or in a year or two, but we have such a system already today. And this is important."
"In fact, the Oreshnik system is not a strategic weapon. At least, it’s neither an intercontinental ballistic missile nor a weapon of mass destruction, particularly because it’s a high-precision missile," Putin said.
"I would like to underscore another aspect: the Oreshnik missile system is not simply an efficient hypersonic weapon. Due to its strike power, especially in case of massive, group launch, and in combination with other precision long-range systems, which Russia also has, the effect of its use against enemy targets would be comparable to strategic weapons," the Russian leader said.
