Senior Russian official Aleksey Zhuravlyov has announced that Moscow could decide in the coming days to launch an Oreshnik ballistic missile strike on Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky's office in Kyiv.
Zhuravlyov, the first deputy chair of the parliamentary defense committee, made the announcement on November 21, the same day Moscow launched an Oreshnik missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnepr. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the attack was in response to Ukraine's recent ATACMS and Storm Shadow / SCALP-EG long-range missile strike deep within Russian territory.
"I'm confident that the Russian Defense Ministry has already compiled a list of worthy targets on the territory of Ukraine," Zhuravlyov wrote on Telegram.
"There is the presidential office on Bankovaya Street [in Kyiv], where Zelensky was hiding in a bunker during the first days [of the conflict]. I'm curious whether the Oreshnik can destroy this impenetrable bunker."
(Related: NATO is switching from defense to offense as it draws up plans to deploy 800,000 troops through Germany.)
Oreshnik missile reduces anything in its epicenter "to dust," says Putin
Zhuravlyov talked about how the headquarters of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army in Kyiv is a suitable target for Moscow based on the circumstances of what just transpired with the backing of NATO.
Russia would be smart to target "logistics hubs for Western weapons in Lviv Region, the Yavorov Military Base, where Western mercenaries are being trained, the bridges across the Dnieper used to transport equipment to the front line," he added.
Putin himself commented on possible strike point for Russia's Oreshnik missiles, including Ukrainian military sites, defense factories, and "decision-making centers in Kyiv."
At a press conference during his recent visit to Kazakhstan, Putin described the Oreshnik missile as one of the world's most powerful weapons. Its impact, he explained, is similar to that of a large meteor striking the earth.
"Anything located in the epicenter is reduced to dust," Putin said.
Outgoing President Biden is responsible for all this. He is the one who just lifted all restrictions on the use of ATACMS by Ukraine earlier this month, which allowed Zelensky to poke the Russian bear in the eye.
Putin has repeatedly warned that Kyiv's use of Western-made, long-range missiles is prohibited under his newly updated nuclear doctrine.
It is clear, he says, that the United States and other Western powers are already directly involved in the war because they would have to be in order to operate these sophisticated missile systems on behalf of Ukraine.
As far as Putin is concerned, NATO is already directly involved in the conflict, which means Russia is free to respond as it sees fit in accordance with its nuclear doctrines.
"It would be fantastic if the missile hit the Clown's office building while he's there, but my guess is that he has long since fled Ukraine and is probably sipping champagne in his mansion in Miami, or on the deck of one of his yachts," a commenter wrote about Zelensky.
"In any case, his day is coming, and when it comes he'll be wishing he had never been born."
Another wrote that he is excited to see the new Oreshnik missile system in action.
"This time send two missiles!" this person wrote. "Bet it registers on the Richter scale! So excited watching this tech. Really looks out of this world!"
Once Russia has enough Oreshniks "ready to fly," added another, "then these people will be in direct contact with the head of the launch crews who will have coordinates already in the missiles, and will be awaiting word of Zelensky's presence in the building(s). Once they receive word that Zelensky is there, they can launch within minutes."
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