by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – A Russian warship carrying Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles carried out drills in the English Channel earlier this month, Sky News reports. Russia began mass-producing Zircon missiles in 2023 in an effort to strengthen its nuclear weapons capability.
A Project 22350 frigate, the Admiral Golovko navy warship left its base in Severomorsk, Russia, on November 2 and reached the Pas De Calais section of the English Channel on Sunday, November 10, Sky News reports. Project 22350 ships are the largest type of warship in Russia’s current navy fleet and are designed for long-range missions.
The Golovko conducted counter-terrorism drills and training on avoiding dangerous targets, Sky News reports. The ship was fitted with 3S14 VLS cells, which can launch Kalibr, Oniks, or Zircon anti-ship cruise missiles. “The sea-based Zircon hypersonic missiles have a range of 900 km (560 miles), and can travel at several times the speed of sound, making it difficult to defend against them,” Sky News noted in its report.
The Golovko’s principal task was to “demonstrate the flag and ensure the naval presence in important areas of the off-shore maritime zone,” the Russian defense ministry said.
In a statement, the UK’s conservative shadow defense secretary James Cartlidge said the Russian Navy drill shows that Britain must boost its own military.
“[The Russian Navy’s] reports underline how Russian activity continues to pose a direct right on our doorstep, not just in Ukraine. That’s why it’s so important for the Government to set out a clear pathway to 2.5 percent of GDP being spent on defense – so that we can rearm at pace, and boost our deterrence,” Cartlidge said.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
U.S. President Donald Trump has given Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approval to take action against Hezbollah if the Lebanese state fails to disarm the Iran-backed terror group, according to a Jerusalem Post exclusive citing a source familiar with the talks.
Firefighters and police rushed to a major blaze at one of Amsterdam’s most famous churches, the Vondelkerk (Vondel Church), less than an hour after the New Year began in the Netherlands. It came in a night when two people died, and numerous others were injured in firework accidents, officials said.
Violence between protesters and security forces intensified across Iran on Thursday, leaving at least five people dead as nationwide demonstrations entered a fifth consecutive day, according to Iranian state-linked media and human rights groups.
The U.S. military conducted five more strikes on drug boats in the Caribbean in the last days of 2025.
Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani took the reins of the nation’s most populous city in a midnight ceremony Thursday.
Swiss police say “several dozen” people were killed and about 115 injured, many critically, after a devastating fire tore through a crowded bar in the Alpine resort town of Crans-Montana during New Year celebrations. Authorities have ruled out terrorism.
World leaders rang in the New Year with sharply contrasting messages, as speeches reflected a world divided by war, shaken by tragedy, while still searching for hope and unity.