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Russian strategic sub recalled for inspection MOSCOW | Tue Dec 21, 2010 12:03am IST MOSCOW (Reuters) - One of Russia's premier nuclear submarines, slated to carry its next generation of strategic missiles, has been called back from sea trials, possibly delaying deployment, a top weapons designer said on Monday. The Yuri Dolgoruky, Russia's first Borei-class submarine, was designed to carry the nuclear-capable Bulava intercontinental missiles, which the Kremlin hopes to make the cornerstone of its arsenal over the next decade. "Right now the cruiser is returning to the shop. I think the work will last half a year," Yuri Solomonov,...

Development of strategic nuclear forces remains the top priority for the Russian military. Within the nuclear triad, the military has a big stake in reinforcing naval strategic forces, although the other two elements, ground-based missiles and strategic bombers, are also being modernized. The navy accounts for approximately 40% of the defense ministry’s budget, according to Vice Premier Sergey Ivanov, who discussed spending in mid-2009. “It’s much more than is spent on strategic missile forces, space forces and the air force put together. It’s hundreds of billions of rubles,” he said, adding that the navy’s money will be mainly spent for...