Russia Confirms Successful Evaluation of Reactor-Driven Burevestnik Cruise Missile

Moscow has trialed the atomic-propelled Burevestnik cruise missile, as reported by the nation's leading commander.

"We have executed a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the ultimate range," Senior Military Leader the general reported to the head of state in a televised meeting.

The terrain-hugging prototype missile, originally disclosed in 2018, has been portrayed as having a possible global reach and the ability to evade anti-missile technology.

Foreign specialists have earlier expressed skepticism over the missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.

The president declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the armament had been held in last year, but the assertion was not externally confirmed. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, merely a pair had partial success since several years ago, based on an disarmament advocacy body.

The general stated the weapon was in the atmosphere for fifteen hours during the evaluation on 21 October.

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

"Therefore, it demonstrated superior performance to bypass missile and air defence systems," the news agency stated the general as saying.

The projectile's application has been the focus of heated controversy in military and defence circles since it was first announced in recent years.

A 2021 report by a foreign defence research body stated: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would give Russia a unique weapon with worldwide reach potential."

However, as a foreign policy research organization noted the same year, the nation encounters significant challenges in developing a functional system.

"Its induction into the nation's inventory likely depends not only on overcoming the considerable technical challenge of ensuring the consistent operation of the nuclear-propulsion unit," experts noted.

"There occurred several flawed evaluations, and an accident causing a number of casualties."

A armed forces periodical referenced in the study claims the projectile has a operational radius of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, enabling "the weapon to be stationed throughout the nation and still be able to reach targets in the continental US."

The same journal also says the projectile can travel as low as a very low elevation above the earth, rendering it challenging for defensive networks to engage.

The weapon, referred to as an operational name by an international defence pact, is believed to be driven by a atomic power source, which is intended to activate after solid fuel rocket boosters have sent it into the air.

An examination by a media outlet recently identified a facility 475km above the capital as the possible firing point of the armament.

Utilizing space-based photos from the recent past, an specialist informed the service he had identified multiple firing positions under construction at the facility.

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