Russia has been adapting to the increasing demands of the Ukraine War with great aplomb. Despite the propaganda of the West, which has dangerously lulled the American and European publics into a false sense of security, Russian technology, capabilities, and the capacity to achieve victory has only increased since Moscow initiated its invasion of neighboring Ukraine two years ago. In the last two years, Russia has never lost a significant amount of the territories it has held in either eastern Ukraine or Crimea. 

What’s more, it continues enhancing the lethality of its weapons platforms, meaning that when the shooting stops in Ukraine, Russia will be more dangerous for the West, not less. 

Systems such as hypersonic weapons or even older platforms, like the T-72 Main Battle Tank (MBT) have all been brought to their fullest fighting capability. One Soviet-era platform that has been significantly upgraded since the end of the Cold War is the nuclear-capable supersonic Tu-160 “Blackjack” bomber. 

The White Swan Rises

This iconic warbird does not have the same kind of advanced stealth features as the American B-2 Spirit long-range nuclear stealth bomber. Its antithesis is likely the B-1B Lancer that, like the Blackjack, was once a Cold War-era nuclear bomber that was transitioned to a conventional strike bomber for America’s Global War on Terror. In fact, the Blackjacks probably lack some of the creature comforts of the B-1B (which is saying something).

The Blackjack bomber is an impressive warplane with a known capability for carrying a variety of weapons and being able to deploy them over any target globally. Interestingly, just like the Americans did with their Lancer long-range bombers, Russia’s military leadership has approved of a plan to upgrade the Tu-160 Blackjack fleet. 

Indeed, the Russians are making the Tu-160M2 “White Swan” supersonic Mach 2-plus bomber. This bird has variable-sweep wings and will be the largest warplane in the world that combines long-range capabilities with a heavy weapons package. 

As American warplanes with variable-sweep wings, such as the Vietnam War-era F-111 Aardvark or the F-14 Tomcat, have shown over the decades, such planes have an improved speed, better maneuverability at any altitude (the wings adjust based on whether the bird is flying high or low), and overall performance superior to that of fixed-wing planes. The new White Swan can carry the same armaments that its Blackjack predecessor can—and more, including the Kh-BD missile and twelve AS-16 Kickback short-range nuclear missiles. This has led my colleague Brent M. Eastwood to rightly describe the Tu-160 family of planes as giant “missile trucks.”

America Needs the B-21 Raider Now More Than Ever

With upgraded radar, navigational, and avionics systems, this four-person-crewed bird is going to be a lethal addition to the Russian arsenal. Moscow is adapting to the demands of what Vladimir Putin has referred to as its “existential war” in Ukraine. As it adapts, the Russians are now innovating platforms that can truly threaten the United States and its allies. This plane will come with titanium components in the airframe. Its fuel efficiency is markedly improved from that of its predecessor and the White Swan will have a new electronic warfare (EW) suite to counter the kinds of 21st-century threats that Russia now faces.

The Tu-160M is one such example of this new Russian capability on display. Woe be to her enemies. Let’s just hope that the Americans can get their B-21 Raider program off the ground in a timely enough manner to not only counter this enhanced Russian long-range bomber ability but also outpace it with a superior stealth capability.

Brandon J. Weichert, a National Interest national security analyst, is a former Congressional staffer and geopolitical analyst who is a contributor at The Washington Times, the Asia Times, and The-Pipeline. He is the author of Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His next book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine, is available for purchase wherever books are sold. Weichert can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.