Putin says Russia successfully tested new nuclear-capable cruise missile

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Sunday a successful final test of a new nuclear-powered cruise missile, the Burevestnik, praising the "unique" nuclear-capable weapon with a range of up to 14,000 kilometers.

"The decisive tests are now complete," Putin, who is waging an offensive in neighboring Ukraine, said in a video released by the Kremlin during a meeting with military officials.

He ordered the preparation of "infrastructure to put this weapon into service in the Russian armed forces."

Putin called the missile a "unique creation that no one else in the world possesses," adding that the Burevestnik has "unlimited range."

During the last test on Oct. 21, the missile spent "about 15 hours" flying 14,000 km, said Russia's military chief of staff Valery Gerasimov, adding that this was not the upper limit for the weapon.

"The technical characteristics of the Burevestnik allow it to be used with guaranteed precision against highly protected sites located at any distance," he said.

Putin announced the Russian military's development of the missiles in 2018.

"The so-called modernity of our nuclear deterrent forces is at the highest level," Putin said, higher than any other nuclear power.

Russia and the United States together have about 87 percent of the global inventory of nuclear weapons, enough to destroy the world many times over. Russia has 5,459 nuclear warheads while the United States has 5,177, according to the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).

"The strategic forces are capable of ensuring the national security of the Russian Federation and the Union State in full," Putin said.