MOSCOW, May 7. /TASS/. The Kazan nuclear-powered submarine (project Yasen-M) has joined the Russian Navy, the Defense Ministry told the media on Friday.

The fourth-generation nuclear-powered submarine Kazan (Yasen project) joined the Russian Navy in a special ceremony at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk on Friday. The Navy’s commander-in-chief, Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, attended the event to hand the St. Andrew’s Flag to the submarine’s commander, Captain 1st class Alexander Beketov, to be hoisted up the submarine’s flagpole, the Defense Ministry said.

Yevmenov expressed the certainty that Kazan’s crew would handle their mission of strengthening the nation’s defenses with dignity.

The lead submarine of project 885M (Yasen-M) Kazan was launched on March 31, 2017. Factory trials began on September 25, 2018. Project 885/885M submarines are armed with Oniks and Kalibr cruise missiles. Further down the road, they may be configured to carry Tsirkon hypersonic missiles.