Speaking to journalists today, Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov admitted that the flight tests of the Bulava missile will be extended into the next year. That was hardly a surprise - the problems with the program are well known and earlier it was reported that the missile will be tested from a land test site before going to the sea.

It is interesting to track the history of projections about the Bulava program -Vladimir Kuroyedov, then the Navy Commander-in-Chief, was saying in April 2005 that the he expects two submarines with Bulava missiles operational by the end of 2006. I was a bit more cautious back then, writing that "it is unlikely that new submarines with Bulava missiles will become fully operational before 2008-2010." 2010 still seems to be possible, although this time caution suggests that 2011 might be a more realistic date.