Russia uses the Oreshnik hypersonic missile again in Ukraine: what it is and why it worries the West

Russia once again placed the Oreshnik at the center of the war in Ukraine after using it for the third time during one of the largest bombings since the start of the conflict, reigniting concern about a system that Moscow presents it as one of its most advanced weapons. Capable of carrying conventional or nuclear charges and associated with a technology designed to make interception difficultthis hypersonic missile aims to be a key piece of the president’s deterrence strategy Vladimir Putin.

On Sunday, Russia launched a massive bombardment against kyiv that killed four people and injured almost 100, Ukrainian authorities reported. in the attacks About 600 drones and 90 missiles were usedaccording to the Ukrainian Air Force.

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Ukrainian air defenses destroyed and disabled 549 drones and 55 missiles.

The Ministry of Defense of Russia confirmed that it launched a hypersonic missile Oreshnik. He said he did so “in response to the terrorist attacks in Ukraine against civil infrastructure in Russian territory”.

Russia denounced on Friday an attack by Ukraine against a student residence in LuganskUkrainian region occupied by the Russian military, where 21 people died and more than 40 were injured.

In his statement on Sunday, The Russian army explained that it had attacked command posts of the Ukrainian army and intelligence servicesand denied targeting civilian areas.

The Oreshnik missile hit Bila Tserkvaa city of 200,000 inhabitants located in the kyiv region, according to the Reuters agency. In this place there is a presence of military infrastructure and Ukrainian strategic bases.

According to an analysis of images of the attack carried out for Reuters by Rollo Collins, a researcher at the Center for Information Resilience, The Oreshnik warhead appears to have been divided into 36 submunitions.

For his part, the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskycondemned the bombings and accused Putin of continuing to “hit residential buildings with his missiles””.

According to Zelensky, the attacks damaged about 30 buildings in kyiv, including homes and schools. He added that The Chernobyl Museum was “practically destroyed.”

Ferit Hoxha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania, reported that the residence of the Albanian ambassador in Ukraine was hit during the attack.

This was the third time that Russia used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine since the war began in February 2022.

Russia used for the first time Oreshnik he November 21,l 2024during an attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. The Kremlin presented the launch as a response to Ukrainian attacks with long-range Western missiles on Russian territory.

The objective indicated by Moscow was the military-industrial plant Yuzhmasha facility linked to the production and maintenance of Ukrainian aerospace and missile systems.

He second known use of the Oreshnik It happened the night of January 8 to 9, 2026 and targeted the region of Lviv, western Ukrainenear the border with countries of the European Union and NATO.

The missile would have been launched from the Russian range of Kapustin Yarin the Astrakhan region. Moscow maintained that the target was Lviv State Aviation Repair Planta facility linked to Ukraine’s military and aircraft maintenance industry.

What is the Oreshnik hypersonic missile like?

Putin has presented the Oreshnik not only as a modern weapon, but as a psychological and strategic deterrence tool impossible to be intercepted by defense systems.

The Russian president has said that “Today there is no countermeasure in the world for a missile of this type, no means to intercept it.”… Modern air defense systems existing in the world, including American anti-missile systems deployed in Europe, cannot intercept them. “It’s impossible.”

Regarding its destructive capacity, he mentioned that “Everything in the epicenter of the explosion is divided into fractions, into elementary particles, and turns into dust.”

According to Western assessments, the Oreshnik it’s a intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) traveling at hypersonic speeds during part of his career and that he uses multiple reentry vehiclesa technology normally associated with strategic nuclear systems.

Uses a propulsion system solid fuelwhich is key for a instant deployment. Furthermore, it facilitates a safer logistics and significantly reduces the risk of being detected even by spy satellites.

Missiles that use solid fuel such as Oreshnik They can be mounted on mobile platforms, such as trucks or submarines, and can be easily transported.

The estimated range of the Oreshnik is from between 3,500 and 5,500 kilometersdepending on the load you transport. That would allow it to cover all of Europe from Russian territory.

The estimated speed of the Oreshnik is greater than Mach 10equivalent to 12,348 kilometers per hour, with some evaluations placing it at Mach 13.

The Oreshnik warhead system is dual; that is, you can use conventional loads or nuclear. That is the most worrying aspect of this Russian weapon.

It can carry a single large payload, or several independent warheads, capable of addressing different objectives.

Russia has said that he Oreshnik It is impossible to intercept. However, defense specialists have stated that It is extremely difficult to intercept, but not necessarily impossible. This is because its combination of speed, ballistic trajectory and multiple re-entry vehicles greatly reduces the reaction time of defensive systems.

In this way, defense systems have extreme difficulties because the Oreshnik It reaches very high speeds, can release multiple re-entry vehicles, can incorporate decoys or penetration aids and reduces the time window available to detect, calculate trajectory and fire interceptors.