Peresvet combat lasers enter duty with Russia’s armed forces

Russian-made combat lasers, Peresvet, have started to enter duty with the Russian armed forces, the Russian Defense Ministry’s Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper reported on Wednesday.

"Peresvet laser systems, based on new physical principles, entered combat service in testing regime with the Russian armed forces," the paper said. "The armed forces started receiving them in 2017 as part of the state procurement program."

Russian military personnel operating those systems underwent special training at the Mozhaysky Military Space Academy in Russia’s second largest city of St. Petersburg.

"As combat units trained using this advanced weaponry, they learned and practiced their deployment and preparations for use," the paper said.

During his State of the Nation Address on March 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested county fellows choose names for a laser weapon, an underwater nuclear-powered drone and a nuclear-powered cruise missile. The laser combat system was named Peresvet after Alexander Peresvet, a medieval Russian warrior monk.

During that speech, Putin said that "significant progress" was achieved in Russia’s laser weaponry program and "there are all reasons to believe that we are one step ahead our rivals in this sphere." However, he gave no further details, saying only that the time was not ripe at that moment.

"I do not want to reveal more details. It is not the time yet. But experts will understand that with such weaponry, Russia’s capacities for defending itself have multiplied."