Russia’s Oreshnik missile likely had no explosives and didn’t cause much damage, Bild analyst claims

Russia’s Oreshnik missile that targeted Dnipro on Nov. 21 likely carried no explosive charge and did not cause any significate damage, German media outlet Bild reported on Nov. 23, citing Bild military analyst Julian Ropcke.

The Oreshnik nuclear-capable intermediate-range ballistic missile was likely a modification of Russia’s RS-26 Rubezh missile, he said.

Ropcke came to this conclusion by analyzing the available footage of the strike.

The RS-26 missile would not contain explosives or a warhead and would have been equipped with a substitute of the same size and weight to simulate the appearance of a nuclear warhead, according to Ropcke.

“This demonstrates that it was a propaganda and political action rather than a military one. There was neither a nuclear charge nor explosives inside. That’s why the damage is so insignificant,” Ropcke said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin previously claimed in an address on Nov. 21 that the Oreshnik missile was a newly designed weapon and that there was “no way” of countering this weapon with air defense.

Putin went on to say that the missile could be equipped with a nuclear warhead but that missile launched at Dnipro had been a “test launch” which did not include one.