The Burevestnik is a Russian name for a bird species. It corresponds to the petrel in English. The name itself carries a meaning. It stands for an announcer or herald of storms. The bird is known for its ability to fly long distances and to be able to defy the natural elements. Maxim Gorky, one of Russia’s greater writers and poets, composed a rhythmic blank verse about the bird. He describes a petrel or the burevestnik soaring up in the skies in expectation of the gathering storm while other species of birds – be it seagulls or penguins – are trying to find shelter. Maxim Gorky depicts the petrel or the Burevestnik not because of the bird’s natural features; rather, he points to the bird as to a rebellious or defiant human character that is in constant quest of change, of victory, of challenge.
A few days ago Russia’s President Vladimir Putin announced a successful test concerning a new missile by the name of Burevestnik. The technological novelty consists in the engine: the missile is powered by a nuclear reactor. The fact that it is powered but a nuclear reactor makes it possible for the rocket to stay in flight for a very, unimaginably very, long time. That in turn means that it can be positioned anywhere around the globe in air and keep flying back and forth, in circles or along any trajectory, and remain on constant alert. Apart from receiving signals from Moscow, it is most likely equipped with AI. The Burevestnik is not supersonic, but its maneuverability makes it difficult to detect, let alone to be intercepted or downed. Russia does not need to rely anymore so much on its submarines located somewhere close to the United States: soon, Russia will be able to position its the Burevestniks in proximity to America. Unlike the nuclear but manned submarines that from time to time need to return to their bases because of the human factor, the said missiles are unmanned. Hence, the only fatigue that one can think of in reference to the Burevestnik is the fatigue of the stuff from which the missile is made, not that of humans.
Besides the Oreshnik and the Sarmat, the Burevestnik is yet another novelty in Russia’s missile arsenal. The announcement of the rocket’s successful tests may have been intended as a means to force the West to sit down at the negotiating table over the conflict in Ukraine. The announcement about the missiles might also be framed as a response to America’s plans of providing Ukraine with Tomahawks. Neither the United States nor Europe have anything comparable with the Burevestnik. The Western leaders might feel ill at ease. That this is so can be proven indirectly by the West’s reaction. Rather than showing an interest in the news, Western diplomats and experts make believe that they couldn’t be bothered about the expanding Russian arsenal. President Donald Trump is reported to have commented that [Putin] “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.”
It is also symptomatic and concurrently funny that the experts who admit to not having enough information about the Burevestnik still belittle, devalue or critique its technical capabilities or its usefulness. Let it sink in: they know nothing about the missile and yet they keep talking about its accuracy, duration of flight, usability, purposefulness and, and, and. One of the problems that those experts point to is that the Burevestnik will pollute the environment with radiation. But will it? If the Burevestnik is to be effective, and an effective missile is one that it is hard to locate, then it might be that it is provided with such technology of the engine that makes this engine leave no radiation. Consequently, no radiation trace gives away the position of the rocket. If that is the case, what then?
The Burevestnik has its undersea counterpart which is the nuclear-driven drone – the Poseidon. It, too, can remain in water for a very long time; it, too, is unmanned, and it, too, can lurk somewhere along the American eastern or Western coastline. For the time being these new weapons are unmatched game changers.
