Russia produces the first batch of giant Poseidon torpedoes – TASS

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Russia Close to Deployment of Nuclear Capable Poseidon Torpedoes Ready – TASSPoseidon Could Be an Independent Nuclear Weapon New Type of Nuclear Weapon Outside Weapons Treaties

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has produced the first batch of giant nuclear-capable Poseidon-class torpedoes, which are being developed for deployment on the Belgorod nuclear submarine, TASS reported on Monday, citing an unidentified defense source.

Since a grim message on New Year’s Eve described the West as Russia’s true enemy in the war on Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has sent several signals that Russia will not back down. He sent hypersonic missiles into the Atlantic Ocean and appointed his top military commander to run the war.

American and Russian officials alike have described the Poseidon as a new class of retaliatory weapon, capable of whipping up radioactive ocean waves to render coastal cities uninhabitable.

“The first batch of Poseidon aircraft has been manufactured and will be received by the Belgorod submarine in the near future,” the state news agency TASS quoted the source as saying.

TASS said major components of Poseidon, including the nuclear reactor to give the torpedo its power source, have been successfully completed. TASS said the crew of the Belgorod nuclear submarine also completed experiments with torpedo samples.

The Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Putin first announced what would be known as the Poseidon in 2018, saying it was a fundamentally new type of strategic nuclear weapon, and confirming that it would have its own nuclear power supply.

There are few confirmed details about Poseidon in the public domain, but it’s basically a cross between a torpedo and a drone that can be launched from a nuclear submarine.

The Russian Defense Ministry has released videos of the 24-meter-tall Poseidon, known as Canyon by NATO, including a simulation showing the destruction of an enemy aircraft carrier and the striking of a shoreline.

Putin’s torpedo

Poseidon has its roots in Soviet plans under Joseph Stalin for a nuclear torpedo that would be able to devastate the shores of the United States.

In a 2018 speech, Putin said the torpedo’s range would be unlimited and that it could operate at extreme depths at many times the speed of any submarine or other torpedoes.

“It is very low noise, has high maneuverability and is practically indestructible to the enemy. There is no weapon that can counter it in the world today,” Putin said.

Poseidon will be transported by the K-329 Belgorod, a special-purpose nuclear submarine built by Sevmash Shipyard.

The United States said in its 2022 Nuclear Posture Review that Russia and China “continue to expand and diversify their nuclear capabilities, to include new and destabilizing regimes.”

According to Posture Review, “Russia is pursuing several new nuclear-capable systems designed to endanger the American homeland or allies and partners.”

Last year, the US Naval Institute said Russia’s development of the Poseidon turned assumptions about submarine-launched nuclear weapons on their head.

“Perhaps most frighteningly, this nuclear weapon has the potential to become autonomous,” the institute said.

“A fully operational Canyon would have an amazing strategic impact,” she said in the article. “As a new delivery platform, it is not covered by existing nuclear weapons treaties.”

(Reporting by Jay Faulconbridge). Edited by Frank Jack Daniel

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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