Russian navy denies missile exercise failure

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, February 18, 2004

Russian navy denies missile exercise failure

The Russian navy denied reports Tuesday that a planned submarine launch of two ballistic missiles in military exercises in Arctic Russia had failed.

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The Russian navy denied reports Tuesday that a planned submarine launch of two ballistic missiles in military exercises in Arctic Russia had failed.

``No unforeseen situations appeared in the course of the exercise,'' a spokesman for Russia's Northern Fleet said, according to Interfax news agency.

Earlier, Interfax and Itar-Tass news agencies had reported the failure of a practice launch of the two missiles in exercises attended by President Vladimir Putin.

Putin Watches As Missile Launch Fails

A technical glitch thwarted the launch of Russian ballistic missiles in the Barents Sea on Tuesday during naval maneuvers overseen by President Vladimir Putin, who watched the massive exercise while decked out in naval officer's garb aboard a nuclear submarine.

The failed launch -- part of an exercise described as the largest show of Russian military might in more than 20 years --marred an event apparently aimed at playing up Putin's image as a leader attempting to restore the country's military power and global clout.

Putin, who is expected to easily win the presidential election March 14, went to the Barents Sea on board the giant Arkhangelsk submarine to observe maneuvers set to involve numerous missile launches and flights of strategic bombers.

But the ambitious exercise hit a snag when a ballistic missile -- a missile that is launched on a high-arch trajectory to hit a designated target -- failed to blast off as scheduled from another submarine, the Novomoskovsk, a government official said on condition of anonymity. The official said the automatic safety system blocked the launch for unspecified reasons.

A Defense Ministry spokesman refused to comment. And Russian state-run television channels, which are lavishly covering the daily activities of Putin ahead of the election, did not report the failed launch.

Source: Agencies

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