Putin says Russian Navy will soon have hypersonic missiles five times faster than the speed of sound

President Vladimir Putin said Russia’s Navy would soon be fitted with new and powerful Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles, which can fly at five times the speed of sound.

As Putin signed a new naval doctrine on Sunday he vowed to respond “with lightning speed to anyone who decides to encroach on our sovereignty and freedom.”

The United States’ quest to dominate the oceans and Nato’s expansion are the biggest threats facing Russia, Putin said.

The 55-page document said the “main challenges and threats” to national security and development were Washington’s “strategic objective to dominate the world’s oceans” and Nato military infrastructure moving towards Russia’s borders.

“Russia’s independent internal and external policy faces countermeasures from the United States and its allies, who aim to preserve their dominance in the world, including its oceans,” said the doctrine, signed on Russian Navy Day.