Russia tests nuclear-powered Burevestnik missile, military says

The experimental weapon is hailed as having a potentially unlimited range - though Western experts have questioned its value.

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"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it covered a 14,000km (8,700-mile) distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov told President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The low-flying experimental weapon, first announced in 2018, has been hailed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade missile defences.

Western experts have previously cast doubt over missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.

Putin said a "final successful test" of the weapon had been held in 2023, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, only two had partial success since 2016, according to an arms control campaign group.