Russia Confirms Successful Test of Reactor-Driven Burevestnik Cruise Missile

The nation has evaluated the nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, as reported by the country's senior general.

"We have executed a extended flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traversed a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the limit," Top Army Official the general reported to the Russian leader in a public appearance.

The terrain-hugging advanced armament, first announced in recent years, has been hailed as having a possible global reach and the capacity to bypass missile defences.

Foreign specialists have previously cast doubt over the projectile's tactical importance and Russian claims of having accomplished its evaluation.

The president said that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been conducted in the previous year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, merely a pair had partial success since the mid-2010s, based on an non-proliferation organization.

The military leader said the missile was in the air for a significant duration during the test on the specified date.

He explained the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were confirmed as up to specification, according to a domestic media outlet.

"Consequently, it exhibited superior performance to evade defensive networks," the news agency quoted the general as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the subject of heated controversy in defence and strategic sectors since it was first announced in 2018.

A 2021 report by a American military analysis unit concluded: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would offer Moscow a distinctive armament with intercontinental range capability."

Nonetheless, as an international strategic institute observed the corresponding time, Moscow faces considerable difficulties in achieving operational status.

"Its integration into the state's inventory arguably hinges not only on surmounting the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the dependable functioning of the atomic power system," analysts stated.

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

A defence publication referenced in the study states the projectile has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, permitting "the weapon to be based throughout the nation and still be able to reach objectives in the American territory."

The same journal also says the missile can fly as low as 50 to 100 metres above ground, causing complexity for air defences to engage.

The weapon, designated Skyfall by a foreign security organization, is considered driven by a atomic power source, which is supposed to commence operation after primary launch mechanisms have launched it into the air.

An investigation by a reporting service last year located a location 295 miles above the capital as the probable deployment area of the missile.

Employing orbital photographs from August 2024, an expert reported to the service he had observed nine horizontal launch pads under construction at the facility.

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