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Russia to continue building Borei submarines after 2020 — Navy’s commander

The Borei submarines are expected to serve as the backbone of the naval nuclear deterrence force for decades to come. Eight Borei subs are to be built by 2020

ST. PERTERSBURG, July 2. /TASS/. Russia will go ahead with building nuclear-powered Borei submarines after 2020, the Navy’s commander-in-chief, Admiral Viktor Chirkov told the media on Thursday.

Earlier, the general director of the Rubin design bureau that developed the submarines, Igor Vilnit, mentioned the possibility of building more submarines on the basis of the Borei family.

"Our shipbuilding program is devised in a way that does not envisage a stop to the construction of Borei class submarines after 2020," Chirkov said at the international naval show in St. Petersburg. The yet-to-built subs will incorporate all cutting-edge technologies that will be available at the moment.

A decision on how many more Borei submarines will be built will be made later, "depending on the situation and the development of international relations."

"Given the threats that we are facing today we say that we need eight (submarines), but tomorrow there may emerge other threats and we may need twelve submarines," Chirkov said.

The Borei submarines are expected to serve as the backbone of the naval nuclear deterrence force for decades to come. Eight Borei subs are to be built by 2020. Three have been handed over to the Navy already. The construction of the series is currently proceeding under an improved project, Borei-A. The frame of the first upgraded project sub, The Knyaz Vladimir, was laid in 2012.