Russia said Monday it had completed two launches of hypersonic cruise missiles, including one from a submerged submarine, the latest tests of emerging weapons President Vladimir Putin has dubbed “invincible”. Moscow has in recent years touted the development of weapons that it hopes will give it the edge in any arms race with the United States at a time of growing tensions with the West. Hypersonics can travel more than five times the speed of sound and manoeuvre in mid-flight, making them much harder to track and intercept than traditional projectiles. The military said on Monday it had fired a Zircon missile from the Severodvinsk nuclear submarine and hit a test target in the Barents Sea in Russia’s Arctic. “The test launch of the Zircon missile from a nuclear submarine was considered successful,” the defence ministry said in a statement. The ministry released grainy video footage showing missile flares illuminating the night sky. Later on Monday, the ministry said in a separate statement it had completed another test launch of Zircon from the same submarine but from 40 metres (131 feet) below the surface. It was the “first time” the missile had been launched from a submerged position, the ministry added in the statement carried by Russian news agencies.