Moscow Announces Successful Test of Nuclear-Powered Storm Petrel Weapon

Russia has tested the nuclear-powered Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the state's top military official.

"We have executed a extended flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the maximum," Senior Military Leader the general reported to President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The low-altitude experimental weapon, initially revealed in 2018, has been described as having a theoretically endless flight path and the ability to avoid missile defences.

Foreign specialists have earlier expressed skepticism over the missile's strategic value and the nation's statements of having accomplished its evaluation.

The head of state declared that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the armament had been conducted in last year, but the statement was not externally confirmed. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, only two had moderate achievement since the mid-2010s, as per an non-proliferation organization.

The general stated the missile was in the atmosphere for a significant duration during the evaluation on the specified date.

He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were found to be complying with standards, as per a local reporting service.

"As a result, it demonstrated high capabilities to bypass missile and air defence systems," the media source stated the general as saying.

The missile's utility has been the topic of intense debate in defence and strategic sectors since it was originally disclosed in recent years.

A previous study by a foreign defence research body stated: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a unique weapon with intercontinental range capability."

Nonetheless, as a global defence think tank observed the identical period, Moscow confronts significant challenges in making the weapon viable.

"Its integration into the country's inventory potentially relies not only on surmounting the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the reliable performance of the reactor drive mechanism," analysts noted.

"There occurred multiple unsuccessful trials, and an incident leading to multiple fatalities."

A defence publication quoted in the report states the projectile has a flight distance of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, permitting "the missile to be stationed anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to reach targets in the United States mainland."

The same journal also explains the missile can operate as low as 50 to 100 metres above the earth, making it difficult for defensive networks to stop.

The projectile, designated an operational name by a foreign security organization, is thought to be driven by a reactor system, which is supposed to engage after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the atmosphere.

An inquiry by a media outlet the previous year identified a facility 475km above the capital as the probable deployment area of the armament.

Employing satellite imagery from the recent past, an analyst informed the agency he had observed several deployment sites in development at the location.

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