US to increase deployment of missile systems in Europe, Asia
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Several major missile systems are expected to be stationed across Europe and Asia, within concerning ranges to Moscow.
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President Joe Biden speaks from the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, Sunday, December 8, 2024. (AP)
The United States is boosting efforts to increase deployment of intermediate and short-range missiles, including basing hypersonic weapons across Europe and Asia, RT reported. Production and deployment of such systems have accelerated within the US in recent years.
According to RT, production includes that of Dark Typhon, a multi-rocket launcher, expected to be able to fire Standard-6 missiles with a 500 km range and Tomahawk cruise missiles with a 2,400 km range, alongside a hypersonic missile that is still being developed. The system is expected to come into effect in 2025.
At the NATO summit in July, Washington and Berlin revealed plans to station the Dark Typhon missile system in Wiesbaden, Germany, starting in 2026. Russia criticized this move as an "escalatory action," pointing out that it would place major cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg within range. Additionally, the Pentagon reportedly intends to deploy the system on Japan’s Io Island by October next year, bringing Russia's Vladivostok within a 2.5-hour flight range.
One of Washington's most ambitious projects is the Dark Eagle hypersonic missile, designed to strike critical land-based targets with a range of 5,500 km and a 3 to 10-meter precision. Although still under development, the prototype has undergone at least seven tests, four of which were successful.
RT reports that the US plans to deploy missiles in Japan by October 2025, reducing the flight time to Vladivostok to 8-10 minutes. By 2026, a launcher with 16 missiles is expected to be stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany, similarly placing central Russia within an 8-10 minute flight range.
Putin says Oreshnik missile systems to be deployed in Belarus in 2025
Russia has consistently warned of the consequences of the NATO military buildup along the eastern flank, taking significant measures to counter such moves, particularly with Belarus.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has formally asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to deploy Russia's Oreshnik missile systems on Belarusian territory, citing their strategic value in countering geopolitical rivals.
Speaking after the Supreme State Council of the Union State in Minsk on Friday, Lukashenko said, "Recently, Russia successfully launched the Oreshnik [missile], this had some impact on our former partners and current rivals… I would like to publicly ask you to have the new weapons systems, primarily Oreshnik, deployed on the territory of Belarus."
Lukashenko proposed that Russia oversee the maintenance of the missile systems until Belarusian personnel are adequately trained and expressed Belarus' interest in determining the potential targets for these weapons.
In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that the deployment of Oreshnik missile systems in Belarus could occur in the second half of 2025, following an increase in serial production and integration into Russian strategic forces.
Putin also noted that Belarus would simultaneously receive the missile systems alongside the Russian military.
Read more: Russia's Oreshnik missile launch making West think: Hungary's Orban
