Russian navy test-fires hypersonic missile in the White Sea

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s navy has successfully test-fired a prospective hypersonic missile. The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that the Admiral Gorshkov frigate in the White Sea launched the Zircon cruise missile. It hit a practice target 400 kilometers (215 nautical miles) away. The navy has conducted a series of test launches of Zircon and is set to officially commission the new weapon next year. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Zircon would be capable of flying at nine times the speed of sound and have a range of 1,000 kilometers (620 miles). Putin has emphasized that its deployment will significantly boost Russian military capability.