On Sunday, Russia Released images from the introduction of a 3m22 -zirkone hypersonic rocket from a frigate in the Barents Sea, in the Arctic Ocean, near NATO boundaries. The launch comes against a backdrop of rising tensions with the West, a few days after several Russian drones violated the airspace of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Poland and Romania.
The Circon test is part of the joint maneuvers of Zapad 2025 with Belo -Rusland, a week of military exercises aimed at assessing the defense and coordination ability between the two Allied countries. It also serves to show that Russia’s military has not lost its power, despite heavy losses more than three years after the start of the invasion of Ukraine.
In the video originally shared on Telegram, the crew shoots the Circon on a target in the Barents Sea, an area bounded by the Norwegian Sea. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the target was destroyed in a direct hit by its hypersonic rocket, which could reach a distance of up to 1,000 kilometers and travel on Mach 9 – nine times the speed of sound.
The images also show exercises with sukoi su-34 supersonic fighter bombers, a two-seater fighter plane that can carry up to eight tons of arming and fly to 4,485 miles (4,000 kilometers) without complementing (or more than 4,350 miles, or 7,000 km, with external tanks).
There is evidence that Russia used hypersonic missiles against civilian targets in Ukraine, such as the Circon or Kinzhal, which is virtually impossible to intercept. This is not only because of their speed, but also because of their maneuvering capabilities, through which they can change the course of the flight to evade defense systems (although in a limited way).
Deliberate provocation or accident?
This week, NATO has started international alarms due to a series of Russian drone invasion of Polish and Romanian airspace, an offense that has so far not been recorded in the Russia-Ukraine war, at least not on this scale. On September 10, at least 19 drones of Russia invaded the Polish airspace, intercepted and shot down by NATO fighters without great damage to the ground. The incident was described by the Polish government as an ‘unprecedented offense’ and a ‘large-scale provocation’, shared by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
Poland then called in Article 4 of the NATO Charter, which establishes a mechanism for consultation between NATO members “to exchange views and information and discuss issues before reaching agreement and acting.” After this debate between member states, they launched Operation Eastern Sentinel, a military initiative to strengthen the defense position on the eastern flank of the alliance by deploying advanced fighters and defense systems, among other things, to counter rocket and drone threats.
The warnings were again found in his airspace on September 13, when Romania, allegedly, allegedly from Russia. Russian drone invasions in NATO airspace produced widespread international condemnation. The United States has expressed support for the affected countries. “We consider it an unacceptable, deplorable and dangerous event,” said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. ‘The drones were undoubtedly launched deliberately. The question is whether they were meant to enter Poland. ‘ The Russian government claimed it was not targeting Poland, while Belo -Russia deviated the drones from their initial track.
Notwithstanding the efforts to present explanations, the joint Zapad 2025 does military exercises between Russia and Belo Russia little to reduce the tension in Eastern Europe. Although both countries insist that the exercises are in nature, the proximity of the exercises to NATO boundaries, as well as tests of hypersonic missiles in the Arctic, is new concerns among member states of the Atlantic Alliance.