MOSCOW, December 19. /TASS/. The Oreshnik intermediate-range missile system is a cutting-edge weapon from Russia, President Vladimir Putin said at the combined Direct Line Q&A session and his annual press conference.
According to Putin, the Oreshnik missile, which he said had been in development over recent years, "is an advanced weapon, and very new, at that."
The range of Russia’s Oreshnik system is up to 5,500 kilometers, and Putin said he had made the final decision to authorize its production.
While Western anti-missile systems have seen "substantial" upgrades, no one will ever be able to shoot down Oreshnik missiles, the Russian leader boasted.
"Let us imagine that our system is deployed at a distance of 2,000 kilometers. Even anti-missile systems stationed in Poland would not be able to reach it," he said.
Putin challenged the West to try and intercept an Oreshnik missile. "Let them choose a target, say, in Kiev, and concentrate their air and missile defense systems there, while we launch an Oreshnik missile at the target. We’ll see what happens. We are ready for such an experiment," he stated.
Also, the president admitted to being unaware of the origin of the name of Russia’s latest ballistic missile. "Honestly, I don’t know," he said with a smile, replying to a question on the matter.