Putin launches Admiral Gorshkov frigate armed with Zircon hypersonic missiles towards Atlantic

Russian President Vladimir Putin took part remotely in the launch of Admiral Gorshkov, a frigate armed with hypersonic Zircon missiles. The frigate is headed on a voyage across the Atlantic and Indian oceans, as well as the Mediterranean, said Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who also took part in the ceremony.

Admiral Gorshkov is capable of carrying out pinpoint strikes against land and sea targets. According to Shoigu, Zircon missiles are “certain to get past any advanced modern air- and missile-defense systems.”

Putin claims that the Zircon hypersonic complex is unique in the world. “I’m sure,” he said, “these powerful weapons will reliably protect Russia from potential external threats, and will help advance our country’s national interests.”

Shoigu defined the main objectives of the voyage as “countering threats to Russia” and “maintaining regional peace and stability, jointly with friendly countries.” According to the defense minister, the ship’s crew will conduct exercises with hypersonic weapons and long-range cruise missiles.

The frigate whose full name is “Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov” is the lead ship of the 22350 project, as stated on the Defense Ministry website. The ship joined the Russian Navy in 2018. Its main weapon is the Kalibr-NK missile system.

Zircon is an anti-ship hypersonic missile. It can reach speeds of over 9,500 kilometers (or about 6,000 miles) per hour. Its testing aboard Admiral Gorshkov began in July 2021. A year later, Putin said that the frigate would become the first Zircon missile carrier in the Russian Navy.

In October 2021, Putin announced that Russia had overtaken the U.S. in the hypersonic weapons race, claiming at the same time that developing these weapons was Russia’s “forced response” to threats from the West.