Wei Dongxu: the new weapon mentioned by Putin is enough to make enemies tremble
BEIJING, October 12 - RIA Novosti. The new weapon mentioned by Russian President Vladimir Putin is enough to awe Russia's opponents, according to China Media Group military columnist Wei Dongxu.
Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the Russian Federation will be able to announce the appearance of new types of weapons in the near future. According to him, the novelty of Russian nuclear deterrence is higher than that of any other nuclear state, and the country is developing all this very actively. The Head of State stressed that "we will have the opportunity to report in the near future on the new weapons that we once announced, they are appearing, we are undergoing tests, they are going well."
"President Putin's description of the new weapon is both mysterious and makes deep sense. The first key phrase is "once announced," which indicates that Russia has previously published relevant information and that these weapons are known to the outside world," Wei Dongxu said on Huanqiu junshi baodao.
The second key phrase, he pointed out, is "being tested," which indicates that the weapon has not yet been deployed and is not currently in service with the Russian Armed Forces.
"The new weapon mentioned by President Putin suggests many possibilities, but one thing is for sure - it is enough to awe Russia's opponents," the analyst emphasized.
In his opinion, the Russian president could have had in mind either the Burevestnik cruise missile with a nuclear power plant, or a new modification of the Zircon hypersonic missile.
The expert noted that Putin had previously repeatedly mentioned the testing of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, stating that "the West has no protection against these weapons."
At the same time, he added, "the Burevestnik tests are fraught with certain risks, if the test results do not meet expectations, Russia may introduce another new weapon: the Zircon hypersonic missile.
Following the established Russian practice of developing such missiles, he pointed out, it is quite possible that the Zircon will be developed both in a version for launching from mobile ground installations and for air-based ones.
"Theoretically, the launchers of the Iskander tactical missile system, which are in service with the Russian armed forces, are capable of carrying and launching Zircon missiles to perform conventional strike missions, and their use in conflicts is not excluded," the Chinese analyst explained.
He added that placing Zircon missiles on airplanes is also not difficult, for example, such a missile can be launched using Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers. If you launch the Zircon from a Su-57 fighter, then the rocket will need to be lightened.
The Zircon is the world's first hypersonic sea-based cruise missile, with a flight speed of up to nine speeds of sound. Frigates of the 22350 project, the latest Yasen-M project 885M multipurpose submarines, as well as the Admiral Nakhimov missile cruiser and the Antey Project 949A submarines under modernization are already armed with these missiles. It is also expected that Zircons will receive all under construction and new frigates and corvettes.
