Russia tests anti-ship missiles in Arctic mission

The Russian military has tested anti-ship weapon systems in extreme Arctic conditions, the Defense Ministry reported on Friday.

Live-fire exercises with Granit and Oniks anti-ship missiles were conducted in the area around the Chukotka Peninsula, Russia’s northeasternmost part.

The exercise involved a number of nuclear-powered submarines, according to the statement, including the Novosibirsk. The Yasen-M-class vessel descended under the ice before surfacing in the Sea of Chukotka and firing a missile. The Defense Ministry released footage of the launch.

The Novosibirsk and other Russian submarines fired at practice targets simulating enemy warships from a distance of over 400km, successfully hitting them, the report said.

The exercise also involved launches from Chukotka by Bastion anti-ship systems. This part of the drill was also shown in the Defense Ministry footage. According to the Russian military, the projectiles successfully hit their simulated naval targets 300km away.

The tests were part of the Umka-2022 mission conducted in the Arctic jointly by the Russian military and the civilian Russian Geographical Society, the statement said. Admiral Nikolay Yevmenov, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, directed the exercise from the missile range instrumentation ship Marshal Krylov.

Defense officials were deployed to the extreme north to test how various weapon systems, including both those already in service and ones still under development, would fare in Arctic conditions. Meanwhile, civilian specialists are assessing the environmental impact of the use of the Arctic region and studying ways to mitigate it.