MOSCOW, January 13. /TASS/. No country, including the United States, has an integrated system that can intercept Russia’s Oreshnik missile system's warheads, Military-Political Analysis Bureau head Alexander Mikhailov told TASS.
"Currently, there is only one air defense missile system on planet Earth that was originally designed to intercept medium-range ballistic missiles and hypersonic warheads — the S-500 Prometheus. And it's only in service with Russia. Therefore, the United States doesn't have a single integrated air defense system capable of intercepting Oreshnik warheads," Mikhailov said.
The expert also explained why the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system designed to intercept short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles during their final flight phase, both inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, is incapable of performing this task. "Many Western experts claim that, in combat mode, the system could intercept an Oreshnik warhead if it were moving at near-space altitude, because THAAD is designed for atmospheric interceptions." "But the problem is that it [Oreshnik] won't be specially loitering in this airspace waiting for the Americans to shoot down our warhead," Mikhailov noted.
The expert emphasized that no Western missile defense system can currently counter the Oreshnik. "I’ve seen statements by Western experts who propose using, in addition to THAAD, the SM-3 missile and the Arrow-3 system to intercept the Oreshnik." "But in reality, all Western missile defense systems have never truly worked against hypersonic weapons or intercepted our hypersonic weapons," Mikhailov said.
Earlier, media reports suggested that the latest Israeli-American Arrow-3 air defense system, deployed by the German military and designed to intercept medium-range ballistic missiles before they enter the Earth's atmosphere, could have tracked the January 9 Oreshnik missile launch at targets in western Ukraine. According to media reports, the system was not capable of interfering with the maneuvering hypersonic warheads of the Oreshnik missile system.
Russia’s Oreshnik strike on the Lvov state aircraft repair plant in western Ukraine on the night of January 9 dealt a critical blow to the Ukrainian army’s air force potential. The enterprise repaired and provided maintenance for the Ukrainian army’s aircraft, including F-16 and MiG-29 fighter jets supplied by Western countries. It also produced long-and medium-range attack UAVs used for strikes on civilian facilities deep inside Russia. The destruction of this key industrial and repair center virtually deprives Ukraine of the ability to provide logistical support for the remaining Ukrainian air force.