Russia confirmed the deployment of the Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile system in Belarus, a nuclear-capable weapon.

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The Russian Ministry of Defense released images of the system traversing Belarusian forests during combat exercises, confirming its entry into active service before the end of 2025.

President Alexander Lukashenko indicated that up to 10 units of the system could be stationed in Belarus, in accordance with security commitments signed with Moscow. Vladimir Putin asserted that the Oreshnik’s warheads “cannot be intercepted,” stating that their conventional use would have a devastating impact due to their hypersonic speed. This assertion was met with skepticism by Western specialists, who associate the system with a “repackaged” RS-26 platform.

The deployment of the Oreshnik comes as the United States and Ukraine engage in critical negotiations, a situation that complicates the diplomatic landscape. Washington maintains that the deployment violates the spirit of the now-defunct INF Treaty, abandoned in 2019, while the Kremlin insists that the system is a response to the advance of Western military infrastructure toward Russia’s borders.

Months ago, Russian deputy Alexei Zhuravlyov stated that Moscow “sees no obstacles” to transferring the Oreshnik system or Kalibr missiles to Venezuela, should the Caracas government formally request them. The legislator asserted that Russia already provides Venezuela with “almost the entire range of available weaponry,” including anti-aircraft systems, aircraft, and classified technical assistance.

Meanwhile, the USS Gerald R. Ford and its naval strike group are moving through the Caribbean, in the largest US deployment to the region since 2004.

With an estimated range of up to 5,000 km and a speed approaching Mach 10, the system could defend against attacks launched from the Caribbean and even from parts of the US mainland.

The military doctrine updated by Moscow in 2024 places Belarus under the Russian nuclear umbrella, allowing for operational coordination in both defense and strategic retaliation. The possibility of Minsk selecting targets, even under Russian control, is interpreted in the West as a mechanism that decentralizes launch decisions and makes it difficult to predict the chain of command in a critical scenario.

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