New threat from Putin: Multiple Oreshnik missiles are equivalent to nuclear weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the attack power would be "equal to the use of nuclear weapons" in the event of multiple Oreşnik ballistic missiles being used simultaneously.

PUTIN'S NEW THREAT TO THE WEST

A Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Summit was held in the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana. The summit, hosted by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, was attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, and CSTO Secretary General Imangali Tasmagambetov.

"THEY ATTACKED DESPITE OUR WARNINGS"

In his speech, Russian leader Vladimir Putin informed his counterparts about the war in Ukraine and the weapons produced by Russia. Putin stated, "As you know, Western officials allowed the Ukrainian army to attack Russian territory with Western-made long-range precision weapons at the beginning of November. We have repeatedly stated that the use of this weapon without the direct involvement of NATO military personnel or experts would mean that these countries are directly involved in the armed conflict. As you know, despite our warnings about the risk of escalation of the conflict, attacks were carried out on the Bryansk and Kursk regions with American ATACMS missiles and British Storm Shadow missiles," he said.

"MISSILE PRODUCTION IN RUSSIA IS 10 TIMES MORE THAN ALL NATO COUNTRIES COMBINED"

Putin said, "The warhead of the Storm Shadow missile, the French SCALP, and the German Taurus weighs between 450-480 kilograms, with ranges varying from 500 to 650 kilometers. The range of the Taurus reaches 650 kilometers. The Russian equivalent of these systems is the Kh-101 air-launched missile. It has a comparable warhead in terms of power, but significantly exceeds each of the European-made missiles in range. The new American missiles, PrSM and JASSM, are inferior to their Russian counterparts in terms of specifications. Regarding the production of relevant missile systems and equipment, in Russia, this is 10 times the total production of all NATO countries. This production will be increased by 25-30% next year. We see the head of the Kiev regime begging their masters for other military equipment. Let no one forget the Kalibr cruise missile in our arsenal, the Kinzhal missile, which has no equivalent in the world in terms of specifications, and the Zircon hypersonic missile systems. Their production is increasing and continues at full speed," he said. Indicating that new missile systems may emerge in Russia in the near future, Putin stated, "In such cases, as they say, the customer will definitely be satisfied."

"WE HIT 17 TARGETS IN UKRAINE AT NIGHT"

Putin, stating, "These were the weapon systems we used in response to the ongoing ATACMS missile attacks on Russian territory," said, "A total of 100 missiles of different types and 466 drones were used. Last night, we launched an attack using 90 missiles of the same type and 100 unmanned aerial vehicles. 17 targets were hit. These are military facilities, defense industry facilities, and their support systems. I repeat once again: these attacks carried out by us were also conducted in response to the ongoing attacks of American ATACMS missiles on Russian territory. As I have said many times, there will always be a response from our side," he stated.

"MULTIPLE OREŞNIK MISSILES ARE EQUAL TO NUCLEAR WEAPONS"

Referring to the "Oreşnik" ballistic missile equipped with non-nuclear hypersonic equipment, which Russia used for the first time, Putin said, "We had to test this under combat conditions. We were forced to use it in response to the attacks on the Bryansk and Kursk regions with ATACMS and Storm Shadow missiles. There is no equivalent to Oreşnik in the world, and I believe there will not be any similar ones soon." Putin explained the operational system of Oreşnik, saying, "Dozens of warheads, guided warheads attack the target at a speed of 10 Mach per second. This means approximately 3 kilometers per second. The temperature of the destructive elements reaches 4,000 degrees, while the temperature on the surface of the Sun is 5,500-6,000 degrees. Therefore, everything at the epicenter of the explosion is fragmented into fractions and particles and turns into dust. The missile can hit even highly protected objects located deep underground. According to military and technical experts, if multiple Oreşnik missiles are used simultaneously in a cluster in a single attack, the power of this attack will be equal to the use of nuclear weapons," he said.

"WE ARE SELECTING TARGETS TO HIT IN UKRAINE"

Emphasizing that the medium-range Oreşnik missile is not a weapon of mass destruction, Putin stated, "Today, we have many ready-to-use missiles of this kind in our stocks. We will continue to respond to the ongoing attacks on Russian territory with Western-made long-range missiles, including testing Oreşnik as we did on November 21," he said. Putin added, "Currently, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Russian Army are selecting targets to hit in Ukrainian territory. These could be military facilities, defense industry facilities, or decision-making centers in Kiev. There have been multiple attempts to attack state-important locations in Russia, such as Petersburg and Moscow, and these attempts continue. The mass production of Oreşnik has begun. However, we will select the means of attack according to the nature of the selected targets and the threats they pose to Russia," he said.

Putin argued that the administration of President Vladimir Zelensky is "completely illegitimate" because elections have not been held in Ukraine, stating, "Legally speaking, they have no right to give orders to the army because they have usurped power. Meanwhile, those who carry out these orders also become complicit in these crimes. They have no right to push people to death and lead them to massacre. Moreover, as I have said before, these orders are crimes," he stated. Putin emphasized that the situation on the battlefield would not change even if the most modern weapons were provided to Ukraine.

Russian leader Putin invited his counterparts to attend the celebrations to be held in Moscow on May 9, 2025, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.