Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during a session of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in Astana that in the event of a massive strike using Oreshnik missiles, the power would be comparable to that of nuclear weapons. However, he emphasized that the Oreshnik is not a weapon of mass destruction, because it is highly accurate and does not carry a nuclear warhead.
"From the materials that have already been made public, including video recordings of Oreshnik strikes on targets in Ukraine, it can be seen that the missile carries six warheads, each capable of independently hitting a target. The speed at which these warheads enter the atmosphere is so high that when they strike a target with kinetic impact, the resulting plasma cloud, along with the warhead’s speed, creates a force comparable to the explosion of a large meteorite," Korotchenko said.
According to him, if three Oreshnik missiles strike a particular target, the resulting impact and energy release will be comparable to the detonation of a standard nuclear warhead with a yield of 150 kilotons.
However, Korotchenko emphasized that a non-nuclear Oreshnik strike lacks the characteristic effects of a nuclear explosion, such as light radiation, penetrating radiation, electromagnetic pulse (EMP), or radioactive contamination of the area.
"There are no such destructive factors after using Oreshnik in its non-nuclear configuration. Therefore, it can be said that this is a humane weapon, which exclusively targets specific objectives and does not lead to any ecological or other irreversible consequences," the analyst added.