PARIS, November 22. /TASS/. Western air defense systems are capable of detecting the launch of a Russian intermediate-range ballistic missile, but they are unlikely to destroy it, French daily Le Monde reported on Friday citing a high-ranking military official with the country’s Air and Space Force.
"[Ukrainian] allies are capable of detecting this type of threat using warning systems, but it is unlikely that they will be able to neutralize this threat. There is only about 30 minutes left to respond," the French daily quoted its unnamed military source as saying.
After the missile is launched, it is impossible to find out whether it is equipped with a nuclear warhead, the source added.
According to the French military source, Russia's recent use of the Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile should be taken in the context of possible negotiations regarding the ongoing Ukrainian conflict with the new US Administration headed by President Donald Trump.
"The Russians want to be in a position of strength, to show what they are capable of and that they are determined," the French officer added.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced earlier in the day that the country’s latest Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile hit all the targets at a major Ukrainian military-industrial enterprise in Dnepr (Dnepropetrovsk) with its MIRVed warheads.
"On November 21, 2024, in response to the use of American-and British-made long-range missiles against facilities on Russian territory, the Armed Forces delivered a combined strike on one of the Ukrainian military-industrial sites in Dnepropetrovsk. For the first time, the Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile with a non-nuclear payload was employed in combat conditions in the strike. The goal of the strike was achieved. All the warheads hit the facility," the ministry said in a statement.
On November 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree approving the Foundations of State Policy in the Field of Nuclear Deterrence, the country’s updated nuclear doctrine.
The fundamental principle of the doctrine is that the use of nuclear weapons is a measure of last resort to protect the country’s sovereignty.
The emergence of new military threats and risks prompted Russia to clarify the conditions for the use of nuclear weapons. In particular, the amended doctrine expands the range of countries and military alliances subject to nuclear deterrence, as well as the list of military threats that such deterrence is designed to counter.
In addition, the document states that Russia will now view any attack by a non-nuclear country supported by a nuclear power as a joint attack. Moscow also reserves the right to consider a nuclear response to a conventional weapons attack threatening its sovereignty, a large-scale launch of enemy aircraft, missiles, and drones targeting Russian territory, their crossing of the Russian border, and an attack on its ally Belarus.