MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. The deployment of up to 10 Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile systems in Belarus is only the first step in the program to deploy this type of weapon as part of a strategy to respond to the buildup of NATO military infrastructure near the borders of the [Russia-Belarus] Union State, Alexander Stepanov, a military expert at the Institute of Law and National Security at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), told TASS.
"It can be stated with a high degree of probability that this is the first stage of this system’s deployment in the European direction. Obviously, there are other threat vectors of militarization of Russia's border areas through the large-scale buildup of the North Atlantic Alliance's offensive military infrastructure. To deter this aggressive approach and implement compensatory countermeasures, the Russian Federation may decide to deploy the missile systems on its northwestern borders," the expert said.
According to Stepanov, based on publicly available tactical and technical characteristics data, the power of one Oreshnik system is sufficient to inflict "unacceptable damage" on any significant Alliance facility in Europe. Moreover, the deterrent potential of up to 10 such systems, announced by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, is sufficient for a disarming strike against NATO military facilities, which are quite heavily concentrated on the bloc's southeastern and eastern flanks. These include, for example, the Romanian bases in the communes of Mihail Kogalniceanu and Deveselu, the tactical air base in Lask and the Redzikowo missile defense base in in Poland.
The next stage, in the view of the expert, could be the deployment of strategic instruments, including the Oreshnik missile system, in the Kaliningrad Region to protect the entire European part of the Russian Federation from possible NATO aggression. Stepanov explained that this refers to bases, including naval ones, in the Baltic states.
The expert particularly emphasized that not only military facilities, but also European defense industry enterprises supplying arms to Ukraine are in focus. He cited the MBDA consortium facilities in France that produce SCALP missiles, and the Norwegian company Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, which produces anti-ship systems, as examples. According to him, in the absence of peace agreements, these facilities could be considered legitimate targets for a comprehensive demilitarization of the Kiev regime.
Lukashenko said earlier that a maximum of 10 Russian Oreshnik systems would be deployed in Belarus. Addressing a session of the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly, the president said that the Oreshnik missile system had assumed combat duty in the republic. He denied media reports that it had been deployed in Slutsk. Lukashenko also said that the missile system was half-produced in Belarus.