Putin Honors Developers of Nuclear Weapons in Signal to the West

Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded state honors to the scientists behind the Burevestnik cruise missile and the Poseidon underwater torpedo — two of Russia’s most advanced nuclear-capable weapons — in what analysts see as another message aimed at deterring Western support for Ukraine.

At a Kremlin ceremony, Putin described the weapons as being of “historic significance for Russia and for the entire 21st century.” He said the Burevestnik missile “has surpassed all known missile systems in the world” in terms of flight range and confirmed that Russia has begun serial production of the Oreshnik hypersonic missile, which can also carry a nuclear payload.

According to the Russian leader, the Oreshnik was used in a strike on Ukraine’s Dnipro region in November 2024, marking the first known battlefield use of an intermediate-range ballistic missile.

Defense analysts have expressed skepticism about the Burevestnik’s reliability and safety. The missile, known by NATO as the SSC-X-9 Skyfall, uses a nuclear-powered propulsion system that experts warn could leak radiation during flight.

Cheryl Rofer, a former U.S. nuclear weapons scientist, told The Independent that once operational, the missile could risk contaminating surrounding areas. Thomas Countryman, a former U.S. State Department official, described the system as “a flying Chernobyl that poses more threat to Russia than to other countries.”

Russian officials claim the Poseidon torpedo could generate a 500-meter-high radioactive tsunami upon detonation, capable of destroying coastal cities and rendering them uninhabitable for decades. Putin has called the weapon “invincible.”

Analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said in a report Tuesday that Russia’s renewed focus on these systems appears intended to project strength toward the United States and NATO. “The repeated emphasis on the long range of the weapon and ability to overcome any missile defense system also indicates that the intended target would be the United States, not a regional adversary,” the report stated.