Moscow Confirms Effective Evaluation of Atomic-Propelled Burevestnik Missile
Moscow has trialed the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the country's leading commander.
"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff the commander informed President Vladimir Putin in a broadcast conference.
The terrain-hugging experimental weapon, initially revealed in 2018, has been portrayed as having a possible global reach and the capacity to evade defensive systems.
Foreign specialists have earlier expressed skepticism over the missile's strategic value and Moscow's assertions of having accomplished its evaluation.
The national leader said that a "final successful test" of the weapon had been held in last year, but the claim lacked outside validation. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, just two instances had partial success since the mid-2010s, based on an non-proliferation organization.
The general reported the projectile was in the atmosphere for fifteen hours during the test on the specified date.
He explained the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were confirmed as meeting requirements, based on a national news agency.
"Consequently, it exhibited advanced abilities to circumvent defensive networks," the media source stated the general as saying.
The missile's utility has been the subject of intense debate in armed forces and security communities since it was originally disclosed in the past decade.
A recent analysis by a US Air Force intelligence center stated: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a unique weapon with global strike capacity."
Yet, as a foreign policy research organization observed the same year, Russia faces considerable difficulties in achieving operational status.
"Its integration into the nation's arsenal likely depends not only on overcoming the considerable technical challenge of ensuring the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," specialists wrote.
"There have been numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in multiple fatalities."
A armed forces periodical referenced in the analysis claims the missile has a flight distance of between 10,000 and 20,000km, permitting "the weapon to be based across the country and still be capable to target goals in the continental US."
The corresponding source also notes the missile can fly as low as a very low elevation above ground, making it difficult for aerial protection systems to engage.
The weapon, designated a specific moniker by a Western alliance, is thought to be powered by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to activate after initial propulsion units have sent it into the atmosphere.
An investigation by a news agency recently identified a site 295 miles from the city as the likely launch site of the missile.
Using orbital photographs from last summer, an expert reported to the agency he had observed several deployment sites under construction at the location.
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