LONDON: Russia on Wednesday rolled out its new generation of laser weapons, including a mobile laser system first announced by President Vladimir Putin in 2018, which Moscow said could far exceed orbiting satellites and drones. can destroy.
In 2018 Putin unveiled a range of new weapons, including a new intercontinental ballistic missile, a small nuclear warhead that can be attached to cruise missiles, underwater nuclear drones, a supersonic weapon, and a laser warhead.
Little is known about the laser weapon named Peresvet, named after the medieval Orthodox warrior monk Alexander Peresvet who died in a mortal battle. Putin revealed some specifics in 2018 and the details of the ledger remain a secret.
Yuri Borisov, deputy prime minister in charge of military development, told a conference in Moscow that Peresvet was already being widely deployed and could blind satellites 1,500 km above Earth.
He cited a test on Tuesday in which he said that within five seconds a drone was burnt down 5 km away. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the test.
“This (missile) is already being supplied extensively to troops, and it can blind all satellite reconnaissance systems of a potential enemy in orbits up to 1,500 km, due to the use of laser radiation to them during flight. can incapacitate,” said Borisov. ,
“But, let’s say, today’s, or even in some ways tomorrow’s: our physicists have now created, and practically mass-produced, laser systems that are orders of magnitude more powerful than those capable of causing thermal destruction on a variety of devices.” Can do ”said Borisov.
Borisov’s comments indicate that Russia has made significant progress with Peresvet, and other not yet undeclared successors, a trend of considerable interest to other nuclear powers such as the United States and China.
His comments indicate that Russia may be blinding a range of satellites and other systems that the United States uses to monitor Russia’s intercontinental ballistic missiles – or drones that are used to target artillery positions in the Ukraine war. are used for.
Borisov said he had just returned from Sarov, a closed town in the Nizhny Novgorod region, once known as Arzamas-16 because it was so secret, which is the center of Russia’s nuclear weapons research.
“Today, so-called weapons systems based on new physical principles are on the way,” Borisov said.
“It’s primarily a laser weapon, an electromagnetic wideband weapon that will replace[conventional weapons]in the next decade — it’s not some kind of alien idea; it’s reality,” Borisov said.