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Russia has conducted a successful test of its nuclear-powered underwater drone, “Poseidon,” President Vladimir Putin announced on Wednesday. The test marks the second nuclear-capable weapons system tested by Russia in a span of just a few days. According to Putin, the Poseidon drone is equipped with a nuclear power unit and can travel at speeds exceeding conventional submarines while remaining undetectable. “Yesterday, another test was conducted for another prospective system — the unmanned underwater device ‘Poseidon,’ also equipped with a nuclear power unit,” Putin said in televised remarks during a visit to a military hospital treating Russian soldiers wounded in Ukraine. “It is unlikely that anything similar will appear in the near future.”_ The drone can operate at depths of over one kilometer and travel at speeds of up to 70 knots. The test comes after Russia conducted a successful test of its Burevestnik cruise missile on Sunday, which Putin claimed had an “unlimited range.” US President Donald Trump has criticized the test, urging Putin to focus on ending the conflict in Ukraine instead. “He ought to get the war (in Ukraine) ended. A war that should have taken one week is now soon in its fourth year. That’s what he ought to do instead of testing missiles,” Trump said. The Poseidon drone is reportedly capable of carrying a nuclear warhead of up to two megatons, according to a source in the Russian military-industrial complex quoted by state news agency TASS. The development of the Poseidon and Burevestnik systems was first announced by Putin in 2018 during a speech in which he unveiled several new Russian nuclear-capable weapons. The US has responded to Russia’s nuclear tests with sanctions, with Washington slapping sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies. Trump has been trying to secure a deal to end the conflict in Ukraine since returning to the White House in January, but talks have yielded no progress.
