Putin says Russia could again hit Ukraine with new Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia could again hit Ukraine with the new Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile that was first used in a November 21 strike on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting of a Moscow-dominated economic grouping of ex-Soviet nations near St. Petersburg, Putin said that Russia now has just a few Oreshnik missiles, but added that it wouldn't hesitate to use them for new attacks on Ukraine.

“We aren't in a rush to use them, because those are powerful weapons intended for certain tasks,” he said. “But we wouldn't exclude their use today or tomorrow if necessary.”

He said that Russia has launched serial production ofthe new weapon and reaffirmed a plan to deploy some of Oreshnik missiles to Russia's neighbour and ally Belarus.

Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko told reporters Thursday that his country could host 10 or more such missiles.