Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 18, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Russia equips a brigade with Oreshnik missiles, boasting hypersonic capabilities. Experts debate their effectiveness.
MOSCOW, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Russia has this year formed a military brigade equipped with its new hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile, TASS news agency quoted the chief of the general staff, Valery Gerasimov, as telling a briefing for foreign military attaches on Thursday.
Russia fired the Oreshnik at Ukraine for the first time in November 2024. President Vladimir Putin has boasted that it is impossible to intercept and has destructive power comparable to that of a nuclear weapon, even when fitted with a conventional warhead.
Some Western experts have said those claims are exaggerated.
(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
A hypersonic missile is a type of missile that can travel at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5) and can maneuver during flight, making it difficult to detect and intercept.
A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a ballistic trajectory to deliver one or more warheads to a predetermined target. They are powered during the initial phase of flight and then follow a free-fall trajectory.
A conventional warhead is a type of explosive device that uses chemical explosives rather than nuclear materials. It is designed to cause damage through explosive force rather than radiation.
Military technology refers to the tools, equipment, and systems developed for use in warfare and defense. This includes weapons, vehicles, communication systems, and surveillance technologies.
A military brigade is a large military unit typically consisting of several battalions and support units. It is designed to operate independently and can be deployed for various military operations.
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