NOVO-OGARYOVO, October 7. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin called Tsirkon hypersonic missile’s successful test a great event for the entire country.
"The work on the Tsirkon system and the stage of carrying out a successful test of this missile is a major event not only for the Armed Forces but for entire Russia, the entire country because equipping our Armed Forces - the army and the fleet - with advanced weapons systems, which indeed have no rivals in the world, certainly ensures our state’s defense capacity for many years to come," Putin told a meeting with Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
The president praised "a huge effort of scientists, designers and talented workers and military specialists." He called the test "a big stage in equipping the Armed Forces with advanced systems."
"I want to congratulate all of you for this work and for its results and express hope that in the future all specialists involved in re-equipping the Russian army will work as effectively and persistently as they have done so far," the president said.
On Tuesday, the Northern fleet’s frigate Admiral Gorshkov fired a Tsirkon hypersonic missile which flew at a speed above Mach 8, and reached a sea target at a distance of 450 kilometers with a direct hit, Chief of Russia’s General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov told Putin via a video link-up.