NATO General on Russia's "Oreshnik": Europe must possess the means to respond effectively.

NATO must possess long-range weapons in its arsenal to respond to the threat posed by Russia's new hypersonic ballistic missile, "Oreshnik."

This was reported by RBK-Ukraine, citing NATO's Transformation Commander Pierre Vandier in an interview with Defense News.

"You must respond in kind. Stability is the ability to respond. If Russia has the means to strike Europe at a depth of 2,000 km, you must be capable of responding. Deterrence is a way to apply pressure on the enemy before they reach you. They need to consider the consequences of their actions before carrying them out," stated Pierre.

He expressed the opinion that Europe will not be able to address the threat simply by creating a defense system similar to Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system, given the vast territory of the continent.

Vandier added that over the past four to five years, a significant portion of the stability mechanisms developed after the Cold War have lost their effectiveness. Among the most important examples, he cited the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

"Oreshnik"

On November 21, Russia used the "Oreshnik" missile for the first time during its full-scale invasion while striking Dnipro. At the same time, the dictator of the Russian Federation (RF), Vladimir Putin, acknowledged that it was a test of this type of weaponry.

Subsequently, there were reports of the potential deployment of such missiles in the Republic of Belarus. However, the Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) called these reports an attempt at intimidation. The head of the center, Andrey Kovalenko, also explained that the claims about allegedly reducing the missile's flight time are part of an information operation by the RF.

For more information about the new Russian missile "Oreshnik," which the enemy regularly threatens with - see the material from RBK-Ukraine.