Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukrainian intelligence has information about the exact location of the Russian missile complex ‘Oreshnik’ on the territory of Belarus. This data has already been shared with international partners for risk assessment and further actions.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Threat to European Countries
“The transfer of the ‘Oreshnik’ missile complex to the territory of Belarus is nearing completion. We understand where it will be located. We are providing information to our partners. I believe that the partners can assess this threat themselves and understand how to respond to it,” said Volodymyr Zelensky on December 19 in Warsaw at a joint press conference with Polish President Karol Nawrocki.
Zelensky emphasized that the Ukrainian side has already warned European and American partners about the deployment of the Russian missile complex in Belarus. He noted that the ‘Oreshnik’ poses a serious threat not only to Ukraine but also to many countries in Europe, particularly Poland and Germany. According to him, it is currently impossible to shoot down this complex using drones; however, the Ukrainian military has experience in countering this weapon.
The president also stressed that official Kyiv has urged partners to impose sanctions against companies that sell components for the ‘Oreshnik’ through third countries. Without these components, Russia will not be able to continue producing modern missile weapons on a large scale. Zelensky emphasized that while effective sanctions have not yet been implemented, missile production is significantly limited.
Reactions from Poland and Belarus
Polish President Karol Nawrocki refrained from commenting on the deployment of the ‘Oreshnik’ complex in Belarus but noted the threats from Belarusian territory. He mentioned instances when drones from Belarus violated Polish airspace in September of this year. According to him, Poland has been in a state of hybrid war with the Russian Federation and Belarus for a long time, as evidenced by numerous incidents at the border.
Meanwhile, on December 19, Alexander Lukashenko responded to a journalistic investigation that indicated a possible location of a secret military facility near Slutsk as a likely position for the ‘Oreshnik’ complex. This facility was identified by journalists using satellite images from Planet Labs in collaboration with the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe and Estonian publications. Lukashenko publicly denied these reports during the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly, calling the information about the complex’s location false.
It is known that in November of last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the “successful combat testing” of the medium-range missile ‘Oreshnik’, which was used for a strike on Dnipro in a hypersonic configuration without a nuclear warhead. A few weeks later, in December, Lukashenko appealed to Putin with a request to deploy this system on the territory of Belarus. The Russian president supported this idea, indicating that the deployment of the complex could occur in the second half of 2025.