Putin's Newest Nuclear-Capable Missiles Keep Flunking Tests: Report

A handful of tests launches of Russian President Vladimir Putin's newest nuclear-capable missiles have either been canceled or failed since June, according to a report.

Independent Russian news outlet Sirena reported on Wednesday, citing a source at a rocket and space industry enterprise in the country, said at least six missile tests have been unsuccessful since June 30.

The attempted tests involved Russia's next-generation "Poseidon" nuclear-capable torpedo, its Sarmat weaponry, its Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, and the Bulava, an intercontinental-range, submarine-launched, ballistic missile which is also designed to carry a nuclear warhead.

Newsweek has been unable to independently verify the report and has contacted Russia's Defense Ministry via email for comment.

The publication reported that on June 30, the Poseidon failed its test launch because an issue with its calling sensor meant its reactor did not start and the torpedo subsequently sank.

"The next launch was planned for late October/early November, but it has been postponed," Sirena reported, citing its source.

On August 30, the third launch of a Sarmat did not go as planned, and was postponed "due to a failure in the missile's centralized control system," Sirena's source claimed.

On October 25, Putin oversaw a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile being test-launched as part of wide-scale nuclear drills, with the Kremlin saying that "practical launches of ballistic and cruise missiles took place during the training."

The Kremlin said a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile was fired from the northwestern Plesetsk Cosmodrome to a test site in Russia's far-eastern Kamchatka region. Another was fired from a nuclear-powered submarine in the Barents Sea, and air-launched cruise missiles were test-fired from Tu-95MS long-range bombers.

"In the course of the events, the level of preparedness of the military command authorities and the skills of the senior and operational staff in organizing subordinate troops were tested," the Kremlin said. "The tasks planned in the course of the training exercise were fully accomplished."

Sirena reported that its source said the Yars missile "fell during the second stage of flight" and the Bulava launch was "canceled at the last moment."

Just days later, on October 31, the next Sarmat launch failed "because the telemetry system failed," Sirena reported.

And on Wednesday, Russia's the same type of missile fell 77 seconds into its test launch, and 300 kilometers (186 miles) from its launch site.

Putin notably didn't test launch his newer Bulava and Sarmat missiles as part of the nation's large-scale nuclear strike drill last month, prompting an observer to question the reliability of the weapons.

Russian military expert Yuri Fedorov told Agentstvo, an investigative site launched in 2021, that the fact that Moscow once again tested its Yars and Sineva ballistic missiles on October 25, despite having the newer missiles in its arsenal, could suggest that the latter "are not very reliable."

"Apparently, they are afraid of misfires," the expert said.

Viktor Alksnis, an ex-state Duma deputy and ally of former Russian military commander Igor Girkin, like Sirena's source, has also said that the launch of the Yars missile on October 25 was probably unsuccessful.

Do you have a tip on a world news story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about the Russia-Ukraine war? Let us know via worldnews@newsweek.com.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.