Moscow Announces Successful Trial of Atomic-Propelled Burevestnik Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, as reported by the state's senior general.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traveled a vast distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official Valery Gerasimov reported to the head of state in a broadcast conference.

The low-flying advanced armament, initially revealed in recent years, has been portrayed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade missile defences.

International analysts have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and the nation's statements of having successfully tested it.

The head of state declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been held in the previous year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, only two had limited accomplishment since 2016, according to an non-proliferation organization.

The general said the projectile was in the air for 15 hours during the trial on 21 October.

He said the projectile's ascent and directional control were tested and were determined to be complying with standards, based on a national news agency.

"As a result, it displayed high capabilities to evade anti-missile and aerial protection," the news agency stated the official as saying.

The projectile's application has been the subject of vigorous discussion in armed forces and security communities since it was originally disclosed in recent years.

A previous study by a US Air Force intelligence center determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would give Russia a distinctive armament with intercontinental range capability."

Nonetheless, as a foreign policy research organization observed the same year, Moscow confronts significant challenges in making the weapon viable.

"Its induction into the state's inventory arguably hinges not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of guaranteeing the dependable functioning of the nuclear-propulsion unit," analysts stated.

"There have been several flawed evaluations, and an incident resulting in multiple fatalities."

A armed forces periodical referenced in the analysis states the missile has a flight distance of between a substantial span, allowing "the missile to be stationed throughout the nation and still be able to target objectives in the United States mainland."

The identical publication also notes the weapon can travel as close to the ground as 50 to 100 metres above ground, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to intercept.

The missile, referred to as an operational name by a Western alliance, is believed to be propelled by a nuclear reactor, which is supposed to commence operation after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the atmosphere.

An examination by a news agency the previous year identified a location 295 miles above the capital as the probable deployment area of the armament.

Using space-based photos from last summer, an analyst told the agency he had detected multiple firing positions under construction at the site.

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