Trump’s warning came after a crowing speech this weekend which saw Putin celebrate the successful test flight of a new nuclear-powered cruise missile doomsday weapon nicknamed “Flying Chernobyl”
Donald Trump has issued a major warning to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin after the despot made a series of wild boasts about his new nuclear missile.
Putin boasted he now has the “highest level” nuclear forces in the world at the weekend as he revealed a “successful” secret flight last week of the Burevestnik doomsday winged rocket which has an “unlimited range”. The US president hit back angrily, saying he ought to get the war in Ukraine resolved.
“A war that should have taken one week is now soon in its fourth year. That’s what he ought to do instead of testing missiles,” he said. He also warned: “They know we have a nuclear submarine, the best in the world, right off their coast. It doesn’t need to fly 8,000 miles. They’re not playing games with us. We’re not playing games with them either.”
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Trump’s comments came after Putin discussed the nuclear-powered atomic missile in a speech during his visit to a military command post this weekend. “We’re talking about testing the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile with an unlimited range,” he said. “As far as I understand, the key objectives have now been achieved.”
In response to Putin’s Sunday broadcast Trump hinted that further crippling sanctions could be on the way for Russia. When asked if he planned additional measures, Trump said: “You’ll find out.”
In Putin’s crowing speech announcing a successful test of the missile, he said: “The modernity of our….nuclear deterrent forces, is at the highest level. Well, it would probably be no exaggeration to say that it is at a higher level than all nuclear states.”
Russia ’s most senior general, Valery Gerasimov, 70, revealed the Burevestnik – aka Flying Chernobyl – was tested on October 21.“The missile flew for several hours, covering a distance of 14,000 kilometres [8,700 miles],” he said. “And that’s not the limit. It is nuclear-powered.”
However opinions differ about the effectiveness of Russia’s new missile, codenamed “Skyfall” by Nato. State Department official Thomas Countryman previously nicknamed the weapon “Flying Chernobyl” because it emits radioactive exhaust due to its unshielded or partially shielded reactor, meaning it “poses more threat to Russia than it does to other countries”.
Mr Countryman also described the nuke as a “uniquely stupid weapon system”. The 12 metre-long nuclear powered cruise missile, with a thermonuclear warhead was first unveiled in 2018.
Until Putin’s most recent announcement the weapon trials had been beset with problems, with successes in only two out of 13 known tests. In 2019 there was an unexpected explosion as crews tried to recover a crashed prototype, according State Department record.
However the weapon has now overcome its problems and is in the last stage of testing before frontline deployment, the Russian leader said.