Moscow Announces Accomplished Test of Atomic-Propelled Burevestnik Missile

Moscow has trialed the nuclear-powered Burevestnik long-range missile, according to the country's senior general.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it covered a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the maximum," Chief of General Staff the commander told the head of state in a broadcast conference.

The terrain-hugging experimental weapon, initially revealed in recent years, has been hailed as having a potentially unlimited range and the capability to evade anti-missile technology.

International analysts have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having accomplished its evaluation.

The head of state declared that a "final successful test" of the missile had been conducted in 2023, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, only two had moderate achievement since several years ago, according to an non-proliferation organization.

The general stated the projectile was in the sky for fifteen hours during the evaluation on 21 October.

He said the projectile's ascent and directional control were tested and were found to be meeting requirements, according to a domestic media outlet.

"Consequently, it demonstrated high capabilities to bypass defensive networks," the outlet stated the general as saying.

The missile's utility has been the subject of heated controversy in military and defence circles since it was originally disclosed in the past decade.

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

However, as a foreign policy research organization observed the corresponding time, the nation encounters major obstacles in developing a functional system.

"Its induction into the state's stockpile arguably hinges not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of securing the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," analysts stated.

"There were multiple unsuccessful trials, and an incident causing multiple fatalities."

A defence publication cited in the analysis asserts the projectile has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, permitting "the projectile to be stationed anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to reach targets in the United States mainland."

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

The projectile, code-named Skyfall by a Western alliance, is believed to be powered by a atomic power source, which is supposed to commence operation after initial propulsion units have propelled it into the sky.

An investigation by a reporting service last year located a facility a considerable distance from the city as the possible firing point of the missile.

Using satellite imagery from August 2024, an expert told the agency he had observed multiple firing positions in development at the location.

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