MOSCOW, April 3. /TASS/. The Central Research Institute of Precision Machine-Building (TsNIITochMash, part of the state hi-tech corporation Rostec) has developed a 9mm round for the latest Udav pistol capable of piercing Level II bullet-proof vests at far longer distances than its rivals, the Rostec press office announced on Friday.

"The new munition, which is also called the Udav cartridge, yields a high casualty-producing effect and is one of the world’s most powerful 9mm rounds," Rostec quoted TsNIITochMash CEO Albert Bakov as saying.

As the Rostec press office specified, some existing 9mm standard pistol rounds can pierce Level II bullet-proof vests but their range of penetrating modern vests with soft armor plates is considerably less compared to Russia’s newly developed round.

Russian specialists have managed to improve the piercing capability through a unique design and technological solution, the press office said.

"The know-how of our cartridge developers consists in the configuration of the bullet core with a cutting edge at its top. Despite the skepticism during the designing, it was experimentally proved later that this bullet core’s design does not affect the accuracy of fire," the Rostec press office quoted the TsNIITochMash CEO as saying.

Rostec announced on March 26 that it had developed a new 9mm noiseless armor-piercing round. The cartridge was developed as part of the R&D work on the new Udav pistol.

The new cartridge’s bullet pierces a Level II armor vest with a noiseless and flameless shot due to the bullet’s larger mass and a cutting-edge at the front end of its core.