Russia Reports Effective Evaluation of Nuclear-Powered Burevestnik Missile

Russia has tested the atomic-propelled Burevestnik cruise missile, as reported by the country's top military official.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traversed a 14,000km distance, which is not the maximum," Senior Military Leader the commander reported to President Vladimir Putin in a broadcast conference.

The terrain-hugging advanced armament, originally disclosed in recent years, has been described as having a possible global reach and the capability to bypass missile defences.

International analysts have earlier expressed skepticism over the projectile's tactical importance and the nation's statements of having accomplished its evaluation.

The president stated that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been held in the previous year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, only two had moderate achievement since 2016, as per an non-proliferation organization.

The military leader reported the weapon was in the sky for a significant duration during the trial on 21 October.

He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were assessed and were found to be up to specification, as per a domestic media outlet.

"Therefore, it exhibited advanced abilities to bypass anti-missile and aerial protection," the media source quoted the commander as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the focus of heated controversy in defence and strategic sectors since it was originally disclosed in 2018.

A recent analysis by a American military analysis unit stated: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a singular system with global strike capacity."

Nonetheless, as a global defence think tank commented the same year, Moscow confronts major obstacles in making the weapon viable.

"Its entry into the nation's stockpile likely depends not only on resolving the substantial engineering obstacle of securing the dependable functioning of the atomic power system," experts stated.

"There were numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap causing a number of casualties."

A defence publication quoted in the analysis claims the weapon has a range of between a substantial span, enabling "the weapon to be based anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to reach objectives in the continental US."

The identical publication also says the missile can operate as close to the ground as 50 to 100 metres above the surface, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to engage.

The missile, referred to as a specific moniker by a Western alliance, is believed to be powered by a reactor system, which is designed to commence operation after primary launch mechanisms have propelled it into the sky.

An examination by a reporting service last year pinpointed a location a considerable distance from the city as the possible firing point of the weapon.

Utilizing space-based photos from last summer, an expert reported to the service he had identified multiple firing positions being built at the site.

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