Russia Announces Accomplished Evaluation of Reactor-Driven Burevestnik Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the nation's leading commander.

"We have conducted a prolonged flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traversed a 14,000km distance, which is not the limit," Senior Military Leader the commander reported to the head of state in a televised meeting.

The low-flying experimental weapon, originally disclosed in the past decade, has been described as having a theoretically endless flight path and the ability to avoid defensive systems.

Foreign specialists have in the past questioned over the projectile's tactical importance and Moscow's assertions of having accomplished its evaluation.

The head of state stated that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been carried out in last year, but the claim was not externally confirmed. Of at least 13 known tests, only two had limited accomplishment since the mid-2010s, based on an arms control campaign group.

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

He explained the projectile's ascent and directional control were tested and were confirmed as complying with standards, as per a local reporting service.

"Consequently, it displayed superior performance to evade defensive networks," the media source stated the general as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of heated controversy in military and defence circles since it was initially revealed in 2018.

A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body determined: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would offer Moscow a unique weapon with worldwide reach potential."

Yet, as an international strategic institute noted the identical period, Russia faces major obstacles in achieving operational status.

"Its integration into the state's inventory potentially relies not only on overcoming the significant development hurdle of ensuring the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," experts wrote.

"There have been numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in multiple fatalities."

A defence publication referenced in the study asserts the projectile has a flight distance of between 10,000 and 20,000km, permitting "the projectile to be stationed anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to strike objectives in the continental US."

The same journal also says the missile can operate as low as 50 to 100 metres above the earth, rendering it challenging for defensive networks to engage.

The projectile, code-named an operational name by a foreign security organization, is believed to be propelled by a atomic power source, which is intended to commence operation after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the atmosphere.

An inquiry by a reporting service the previous year identified a location a considerable distance from the city as the possible firing point of the armament.

Utilizing orbital photographs from last summer, an analyst informed the agency he had detected nine horizontal launch pads being built at the facility.

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