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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, Mr Gerasimov. Go ahead, please.

Chief of the General Staff of Russia’s Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov: Good afternoon, Comrade Supreme Commander-in-Chief,

Here is what I have to report. At 7:15 am yesterday, the frigate Admiral Gorshkov deployed in the White Sea, for the first time fired a Tsirkon hypersonic cruise missile at a sea target in the Barents Sea.

The goal has been achieved. The test firing has been declared successful. The missile destroyed the target in a direct hit.

The missile covered a distance of 450 kilometres. The maximum altitude of its trajectory was 28 kilometres. The flight lasted 4.5 minutes. The missile reached the hypersonic speed of over Mach 8.

Following the state tests, the Tsirkon system will be deployed on submarines and surface ships.

This concludes my report.

Vladimir Putin: Mr Gerasimov,

The Tsirkon project and the stage you have reported today – the successful test flight of the missile – are a major event not only for the Armed Forces but also for the nation as a whole. Supplying our Armed Forces – the Army and the Navy – with the most advanced armaments that have no analogues in the world will reliably ensure national defences for a long time to come.

The success of this project, as we are well aware, is the result of the hard work of our scientists, engineers, talented workers and military professionals. It is an important stage in the provision of advanced armaments to our Armed Forces.

I would like to congratulate all those who have been involved in the Tsirkon project. I would like to thank the Defence Minister and you, Mr Gerasimov. I know that you not only act as the customer but are also directly involved in the creation of such systems.

I would like to thank you for a job well done and to express the hope that all specialists involved in the rearmament projects will continue to work effectively and persistently, as they always do.

Once again, I would like to congratulate you on this event and to wish you success in your future endeavours.

Thank you.

Valery Gerasimov: Comrade Supreme Commander-in-Chief, thank you for this high assessment. We will continue to do our utmost to enhance the combat capability of the Armed Forces and to strengthen national defences.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you, and all the best.