Spread your wings: Putin announced the completion of tests of the Burevestnik missile

The Russian Federation has completed crucial tests of the Burevestnik cruise missile with a nuclear power plant. This was stated by Vladimir Putin on October 26 during a visit to one of the command posts of the United Group of Forces. The President stressed that there are no analogues of such weapons in the world. Now the Russian Armed Forces have a lot of work to do to put the Burevestnik on combat duty. The recent training of the strategic nuclear forces, which took place last week, confirmed the reliability of Russia's nuclear shield. It is possible that such statements about the country's new weapons are a signal to the United States and the collective West, which allowed the supply of long—range missiles to Kiev for strikes deep into the Russian Federation. During the visit, the situation at the front was also touched upon: according to the President, Russian troops have completed the encirclement of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the area of Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov. About what remains a key priority in solving combat missions in the free zone — in the Izvestia material.

The operational situation in the SVO zone

Vladimir Putin arrived at one of the control points of the united group of forces on the morning of October 26. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief traditionally works in military uniform at such meetings: here he was provided with full information about the training of strategic forces that took place this week, and about the situation on the line of contact. The President was informed that there are up to 5,000 Ukrainian Armed Forces troops in the Kupyansk area, and 5.5 thousand in the Red Army area. The Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Army General Valery Gerasimov, reported to the head of state that the Center group was tasked with destroying surrounded units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the area of Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov in the DPR.

—The forces of the West surrounded Kupyansk, captured the Oskol River crossing and blocked the AFU grouping," he said.

According to Gerasimov, an offensive is underway in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhia regions. The successful advance in the Krasnolimansk direction continues, and the liberation of the village of Yampol is coming to an end. The North group is successfully advancing in the Volchansk area (Kharkiv region), 70% of the city's territory has already been liberated. The President congratulated all the personnel: the successes of the Russian troops became possible thanks to the heroic actions of soldiers, sergeants, junior commanders, as well as the meticulous work of headquarters and all levels of leadership, he said.

Vladimir Putin did not rule out that the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who were surrounded in the Kupyansk and Red Army directions, would try to escape. The encirclement of Kupyansk and Krasnoarmeysk threatens the Ukrainian Armed Forces with huge losses. 5,000 people who were surrounded are more than a brigade, military expert Viktor Litovkin explained to Izvestia.

If the Ukrainian Armed Forces formations do not withdraw from Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov, they will be destroyed or captured, military expert Vasily Dandykin believes.

"This may be the biggest success since the capture of the Ukrainian group in Mariupol," he said. — The Red Army agglomeration is of great importance, control over it will allow us to begin the liberation of the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration. As for Kupyansk, everything here is very deplorable for the formations of the Kiev regime. With the liberation of this crucial logistics hub, there will be access to Volchansk, where fighting is also taking place. In other words, we are talking about the formation of a more extensive foothold on Kharkiv soil. And from it it will be possible to attack Slavyansk from the other side.

The head of state called the preservation of the lives of Russian servicemen another important aspect. This should remain a key priority when solving combat missions in the CBO zone, the president said. The head of state also devoted a significant part of his speech to the attitude of the Russian army towards the enemy. In particular, in order to minimize casualties, he instructed to ensure the conditions for the surrender of Ukrainian servicemen.

"All necessary assistance should be provided to local residents, and measures should be taken to evacuate them to safe areas," the Russian leader said.

Such an offer to the enemy to surrender in order to avoid unnecessary bloodshed is a tradition of the Russian army, rooted in the Suvorov era, experts explain.

— But now the resistance is not as fierce as before. I think next week will be significant in this regard," Vasily Dandykin believes.

What is Russia's nuclear triad?

The meeting also assessed the recent tests of advanced weapons during the training of nuclear forces, which Russia conducted on October 22. At the same time, combat training launches of all three components of the strategic nuclear forces were carried out, the head of state noted. The president called Russia's nuclear forces the most modern in the world.

— The so-called modernity of our nuclear deterrence forces is at the highest level. It is probably no exaggeration to say that it is at a higher level at least [among] all nuclear states," he said.

It is believed that 95% of Russia's strategic nuclear forces consist of new and state-of-the-art missile technology, Dmitry Kornev said. At the moment, the Strategic Missile Forces (Strategic Missile Forces) is probably the most powerful missile structure in the world. Russia has deployed two types of mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles.: "Yars" and "Topol-M." The Topol-M carries one warhead, while the Yars carries two to six warheads.

— Probably next year, the replacement of the Topol-M with new modifications of the Yars missiles, which have been tested in recent years, will begin. In addition, we have the Avangard missile system. Several regiments of this missile system with hypersonic aeroballistic combat equipment have been deployed," Dmitry Kornev, editor of the Militaryrussia portal, said in a conversation with Izvestia.

The naval component of Russia's nuclear triad is represented by Bulava missiles on Borey submarines and Sineva missiles on Project 667 BDRM submarines. The other day, test launches of these missiles were conducted during strategic exercises.

— Well, the air component of the nuclear forces is the TU-160, TU-160M, Tu-160I, and Tu-95MS supersonic missile carriers. These aircraft can carry X-101 type missiles with a range of up to 5.5 thousand km. These are modern cruise missiles that can carry a nuclear charge," Dmitry Kornev said.

What is known about the new Burevestnik rocket

Vladimir Putin's central statement was the announcement of the completion of the decisive tests of the Burevestnik cruise missile with a nuclear power plant. The President instructed to start preparing the infrastructure for the deployment of the Burevestnik and identify possible ways to use weapons. Moreover, it is necessary to decide which class of weapon the Burevestnik cruise missile with a nuclear power plant belongs to.

The Burevestnik cruise missile was first announced in March 2018 in the President's message to the Federal Assembly. It is possible that it will be mass-produced and put on combat duty. The Burevestnik rocket is equipped with a nuclear power plant and actually has an unlimited flight range and launches from the ground.

Due to the nuclear power plant, it can fly like a conventional cruise missile and stay in the air for several months. For example, she can "go" to the waiting area and wait for an order to strike at certain targets and facilities, Dmitry Kornev said.

— Most likely, such missiles will carry a fairly powerful thermonuclear charge, probably of the megaton class, because there is probably no special point in using them for some ordinary purposes, especially in a non-nuclear conflict. How many such missiles will be put into service is still a question. But apparently, the base point will be able to launch these missiles with several launchers, possibly one after the other, in order to create a grouping of these missiles in standby mode somewhere in the waiting area. Well, then, if necessary, these missiles can receive one or another target designation," he explained.

Russia sends a signal to the United States

Earlier, Vladimir Putin warned of Russia's serious response to attempts to launch attacks deep into the territory of the Russian Federation with long-range weapons. "If such weapons are used to strike Russian territory, the response will be very strong, if not overwhelming," he said. Russia is demonstrating to the United States that Moscow is putting on combat duty a completely new type of weapon with a fundamentally new method of use, political analyst Dmitry Yelovsky told Izvestia.

— He should encourage the US leadership to start talking about modernizing the global security system, which includes the START-3 treaty and the restoration of the ABM treaty. That is, the appearance of a new type of carrier must be introduced in START-3. Given that it has been suspended by Russia, this requires a negotiation process on the parameters of the agreement and its implementation. Or start a new arms race. Only it won't be between Russia and the United States. This time, China and India will participate in the race on equal terms, which significantly complicates the situation of the United States. We hope that the Americans will come to their senses, assess the risks and negotiate," he said.

Russia has repeatedly reaffirmed its commitment to the Strategic Offensive Arms Reduction Treaty (START Treaty). Back in late September, Vladimir Putin announced his readiness to comply with the START-3 treaty for another year. However, provided that the United States acts in a similar way. Recall that at the end of this agreement, the parties will have no documents that would restrain their nuclear arsenals. Donald Trump called this proposal a good idea. Vladimir Putin instructed relevant agencies to monitor the activities of the United States in relation to the START arsenal.