Data gathered in Russia’s remote north suggests that Moscow may be working on testing a missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead far outside the boundaries of the country.
Activity around a base in Russia’s north suggests that Moscow is again running tests on the missile known as Burevestnik or SSC-X-9 Skyfall, according to a New York Times analysis of satellite imagery and aviation data from the area. Russian President Vladimir Putin first publicly announced the development of the missile and four other rockets in 2018.
Russia previously tested the nuclear-powered missile from 2017 to 2019, according to an open-source review of evidence by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI). All the tests were failures, and at least one had deadly consequences, resulting in the deaths of seven people.
“The Burevestnik is a nuclear-powered, nuclear-tipped subsonic cruise missile designed to have a range of about 23,000 km (14,000 mi),” the NTI report says, calling the weapon a “second-strike, strategic-range weapon of a type that has not been deployed by any other nation.”
Russia issued an aviation notice on August 31 warning of a “temporary danger area” around the northern known missile base. The warning has been extended several times and is now scheduled to last through October 6. Over the past month, activity at the base captured by satellite images has shown a truck and trailer with roughly the dimensions of the missile and a moveable shelter revealing and covering again the launch site, according to the NYT.
The U.S. Air Force has also appeared to increase its surveillance of the area, suggesting that the U.S. military has noticed increased Russian activity, as well.
The missile would likely fall under regulation by the U.S.-Russia New START treaty inked to tamp down nuclear proliferation between the two superpowers. Moscow has already been accused of violating the treaty numerous times, however. The agreement is scheduled to expire in February of 2026.
The New START treaty was almost scrapped in 2021. Former President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Open Skies treaty with Russia in 2020, accusing Moscow of violating its terms. The former president seemed prepared to let New Start lapse in February 2021 when it was set to expire, but President Joe Biden took over the White House the month before.
The threat of Russia’s nuclear stockpile has been a conscious concern of experts watching developments in the war in Ukraine. Some experts have advocated that Ukraine be forced into a settlement with Russia to mitigate the risk that a lengthy war may drive Moscow toward using a nuclear weapon on the battlefield.
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Biden acknowledged Russia’s nuclear threat in June, calling it “real.”
“When I was out here about two years ago saying I worried about the Colorado River drying up, everybody looked at me like I was crazy,” Biden told donors in California. “They looked at me like when I said I worry about Putin using tactical nuclear weapons. It’s real.”