[cynwoody]

The difference in sizes is a question of naval orientation. The U.S. needs big ships since its primarily an expeditionary force, while the Russian navy has to worry about its immediate vicinity.

These boats are floating in a land-locked lake with no St. Lawrence Seaway to get to blue water. And nothing nearby worth bombarding, barring a falling-out with the Ayatollahs.

So, it would seem their only logical purpose would be the current mission: to prove that the US is not the only nation with a cruise missile capability without having to overfly Turkey or join the crowd in the Mediterranean.

[sukhoi-30mki]

Russia has had long-range land-attack cruise missile capability for over three decades. The Kalibr has a lower range than its earlier Samspon missile.

http://missilethreat.com/missiles/rk-55-ss-n-21ssc-x-4/