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Wednesday, 3 November 2021 (YJC)_ President Vladimir Putin announced that deliveries of Russia’s Zircon hypersonic cruise missile to the navy will begin in 2022.
Tests of Russia’s Zircon hypersonic cruise missile are nearing completion and deliveries to the navy will begin in 2022, President Vladimir Putin has said.
The move announced on Wednesday is part of a bid by Moscow to forge ahead in a race with the United States and others to deploy the next generation of long-range weapons that are harder to detect and intercept.
Russia said last month that it had successfully test-launched a Zircon missile from a submarine for the first time.
“Now, it is especially important to develop and implement the technologies necessary to create new hypersonic weapons systems, high-powered lasers and robotic systems that will be able to effectively counter potential military threats, which means they will further strengthen the security of our country,” Putin said in televised remarks.
He said that in testing, the missile had successfully hit both ground and sea targets when fired from underwater or from surface ships.
Some Western experts have questioned how advanced Russia’s new generation of weapons is, while recognising that the combination of speed, manoeuvrability and altitude of hypersonic missiles makes them difficult to track and intercept.
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