No decision has been made on the future of Russia’s nuclear-powered battlecruiser Pyotr Veliky, including any preliminary decision to abandon its modernization, Vladimir Maltsev, chairman of the All-Russian Fleet Support Movement, told RIA Novosti.
His statement directly contradicts earlier media reports claiming that a special commission had provisionally concluded that repairing and modernizing the Project 1144.2 warship would not be economically justified.
Those reports had cited Maltsev as their source, but he has now categorically denied that any decision concerning the cruiser’s future has been taken.
Maltsev also emphasized the importance of preserving the unique Project 1144 class of nuclear-powered cruisers, arguing that these warships retain significant military value.
He pointed to Pyotr Veliky’s sister ship, Admiral Nakhimov, which has undergone extensive repairs and modernization.
According to Maltsev, operating the two nuclear-powered cruisers together could allow the Russian Navy to establish an exceptionally powerful naval strike group.