According to Daily Mail commentators, Britain is still poorly prepared to counter the Russian submarine fleet. The assessment was made in response to sea trials involving the Russian nuclear-powered submarine Khabarovsk.

The publication highlighted the vessel’s size and potential armament. Khabarovsk has a displacement of more than 10,000 tons and is about 135 meters long. Daily Mail reports that the submarine can carry up to six Poseidon underwater vehicles equipped with nuclear warheads of up to two megatons. The authors argue that the use of such weapons could cause large-scale radioactive contamination of coastal areas.

The newspaper also described Khabarovsk as a highly specialized platform with no direct Western equivalent. Another Russian submarine identified as a carrier of the Poseidon system is Belgorod.

Daily Mail commentators said the more troubling issue is how unprepared Britain remains to deal with what they describe as this new threat.

Khabarovsk was rolled out of its construction hall in Severodvinsk in early November last year. The Project 09851 submarine was designed specifically as a carrier for the Poseidon underwater system.

In August, Khabarovsk went to sea for factory trials for the first time. Once commissioned, the submarine is expected to become part of the naval component of Russia’s strategic nuclear forces and to serve a strategic deterrence role.