MOSCOW, December 6. /TASS/. The launch of the newest Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile has become a demonstration of Russia’s potential response to the deployment of US-made intermediate-and shorter-range missiles in various parts of the world, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with kp.ru.
"We treat the test launch of the newest Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range system at a legitimate military target in Ukraine as one of the actual warning signals," the deputy foreign minister said. "Meanwhile, this step not only points to the potential form of reaction to the sharp escalatory actions of the US and NATO within the context of the Ukrainian crisis, but also a demonstration of Russia’s potential response to the deployment of US-made intermediate-and shorter-range ground-based missiles in various regions."
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on November 21 that the United States and its NATO allies had earlier announced that they would authorize Ukraine’s use of long-range weapons to hit inside Russia, after which American and British missiles struck Russian military facilities in the Kursk and Bryansk regions. He said that Russia responded to those attacks by firing Russia's newest Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile with a non-nuclear warhead at a Ukrainian defense industry facility, the Yuzhmash plant in Dnepr (formerly Dnepropetrovsk). The Russian leader emphasized that the West's provocative policies could have dire consequences if they further escalate the conflict.