A Russian nuclear-powered Severodvinsk submarine fired an experimental Tsirkon (meaning “zircon”) hypersonic missile from beneath the surface of the Barents Sea north of Scandinavia Monday, CNN reports.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated the missile successfully hit its undisclosed target. This is the second successful test of the Tsirkon missile; in July, it was fired from a surface warship. “The test firing of the Tsirkon missile from a nuclear submarine was deemed successful,” the ministry said.
In February 2018, the Trump administration announced the US was withdrawing from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, claiming Russia was in material breach of the agreement. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the development of the Tsirkon missile weeks later.