Putin claims Russia conducted successful nuclear cruise missile test

Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said the Burevestnik was tested on October 21

Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed the test of a new nuclear-powered cruise missile that his military said was capable of traveling for at least 14,000 kilometers (8,700 miles).

 

Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said the Burevestnik was tested on Oct. 21, according to footage of a meeting with military commanders on the state-run Tass news service’s Telegram channel. The weapon, which flew for about 15 hours, is capable of beating missile-defense networks, he said. 

 

Putin discussed the Burevestnik with Gerasimov after a Budapest summit proposed by US President Donald Trump to discuss peace in Ukraine collapsed a week after it was floated. The US imposed sanctions last week on Russia’s two largest oil producers, Rosneft and Lukoil, while also renewing discussions in Washington about potentially supplying Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine. Putin previously called the possible deployment of Tomahawks in Ukraine an escalation.