Moscow Confirms Accomplished Trial of Nuclear-Powered Burevestnik Weapon

The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the country's leading commander.

"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a vast distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff the commander reported to the head of state in a televised meeting.

The low-altitude prototype missile, first announced in recent years, has been described as having a possible global reach and the capacity to bypass anti-missile technology.

Western experts have in the past questioned over the projectile's tactical importance and Moscow's assertions of having successfully tested it.

The head of state said that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been carried out in last year, but the statement could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, just two instances had limited accomplishment since the mid-2010s, based on an non-proliferation organization.

The military leader said the weapon was in the air for 15 hours during the trial on 21 October.

He explained the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were evaluated and were confirmed as complying with standards, according to a domestic media outlet.

"Therefore, it exhibited high capabilities to evade missile and air defence systems," the outlet stated the general as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of heated controversy in armed forces and security communities since it was originally disclosed in 2018.

A previous study by a American military analysis unit determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a singular system with intercontinental range capability."

However, as a foreign policy research organization commented the corresponding time, Russia faces significant challenges in developing a functional system.

"Its induction into the state's inventory arguably hinges not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of guaranteeing the consistent operation of the reactor drive mechanism," specialists noted.

"There have been multiple unsuccessful trials, and a mishap resulting in a number of casualties."

A military journal cited in the analysis asserts the missile has a flight distance of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, permitting "the projectile to be based anywhere in Russia and still be able to strike objectives in the American territory."

The corresponding source also explains the projectile can fly as at minimal altitude as 164 to 328 feet above the earth, making it difficult for air defences to engage.

The weapon, designated a specific moniker by a foreign security organization, is considered powered by a reactor system, which is intended to engage after solid fuel rocket boosters have launched it into the atmosphere.

An inquiry by a reporting service recently pinpointed a site a considerable distance above the capital as the likely launch site of the weapon.

Employing orbital photographs from last summer, an analyst told the outlet he had detected nine horizontal launch pads under construction at the location.

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