Rostislav Ishchenko on Why Russia Developed Poseidon, Oreshnik and Burevestnik
Analyst Rostislav Ishchenko says Russia’s Poseidon and Burevestnik deter a U.S. first strike, while Oreshnik offsets Western military advantages and counters new U.S. missile deployments in Europe.
Political analyst Rostislav Ishchenko has explained the strategic purpose behind Russia’s newest weapons systems.
He was asked what practical advantage Russia could gain from deploying cutting-edge systems such as Poseidon, Oreshnik and Burevestnik, given that these weapons are few in number, extremely expensive — with Oreshnik, according to President Vladimir Putin, costing 200 billion rubles each — and that their use would inevitably provoke a massive retaliatory strike with aging but still lethal U.S. systems like Trident and Minuteman. The question raised the core dilemma: what is the point of these weapons if the West claims it does not fear them, and if their use would trigger a war with no winners?
Ishchenko responded that Burevestnik and Poseidon are explicitly positioned as doomsday weapons, intended to demonstrate to the United States that a sudden disarming nuclear first strike on Russia is impossible. Their purpose, he noted, is to remove any temptation to attempt such a scenario.
As for Oreshnik, Ishchenko explained that this system is designed to offset the West’s demographic and technological advantage on the European theater — including superiority in aviation and naval weaponry — and to provide a response to Washington’s stated (and partially already implemented) plans to deploy new types of U.S. missiles in Europe that could fall under the category of intermediate-range missiles.