FACT CHECK: No, Russia Did Not Test Nuclear Weapons This Week

Anthony Pascone | Contributor

A post being shared on X claims that Russia has successfully launch tested a nuclear weapon that can reach Los Angeles in 30 minutes.

Verdict: Misleading

Russia tested ballistic missiles, not nuclear weapons. The missiles launched did not have a nuclear warhead on them.

Fact Check:

The war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified, escalating to the point that even North Korean troops are potentially being deployed, according to North American Treaty Organization (NATO) sources. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been defiant, threatening retaliation if the United States and NATO assist the Ukraine with striking deep into Russia with long-range missiles.


A post with over three million views on X claims that Moscow test-fired some of their nuclear weapons this past week. It states that these nuclear weapons will be able to reach Los Angeles in 30 minutes and Paris in 10 minutes.

This is misleading, however. Russia did test missiles as a way to simulate what they call a “massive” nuclear response should another country strike first. The missiles they launch-tested were ballistic, not nuclear. No nuclear fallout has been observed from these tests.

Russia test-launched it’s Yars Intercontinental ballistic missile from a cosmodrome in Plasetsk, a northwestern Russian town, all the way to a peninsula in the far east. Reuters reports that Moscow’s show of force included Sineva and Bulava missiles launched from submarines and cruise missiles from planes, all as part of a “triad” of air, land and sea attacks.

Putin stated that he does not wish to engage in a new arms race, but will “maintain nuclear forces at the level of necessary sufficiency.”

This story was first reported by Newsweek.

Anthony Pascone

Contributor

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