It was laid down in July 1992 as a Project 949A cruise missile submarine, NATO designation Oscar II class.

Due to chronic underfunding, its construction was suspended, then resumed at a low rate of progress before the ship was redesigned to become a unique vessel — the first Russian fifth-generation submarine, according to the Ministry of Defence.

[13] In 1997, construction was put on hold due to the severe economic crisis after the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the submarine three-quarters finished, mainly for financial reasons.

[14] The 100 million rubles provided by the Ministry of Defence was insufficient, and Sevmash was forced to use its own financial resources to make up for the deficit.

The Ministry of Defence considered other options to finish the submarine, including selling it to the Indian Navy, which would have financed completion of the vessel.

[16] In early 2012, the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Vladimir Sergeyevich Vysotsky, stated that Belgorod would be completed as a "special projects" vessel.

[15][18] The Project 09852 Belgorod refit began in 2012 in order to transport Losharik for GUGI operations from the 29th submarine division Military Unit 13090 base at Olenya Bay.

A press report by the official Russia state-owned TASS agency from April 2021 indicates a new objective from the Russian Defense Ministry to send the K-329 into service in the Pacific zone.

[29] This information could confirm the problems encountered with the Losharik submarine and the shift to the background of the operations envisaged on the Arctic continental shelf.

The division is a special formation, the operational arm of the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research (GUGI), which reports directly to the Russian Defence Ministry.

[45] The Belgorod Project is aimed at the development of a multi-role submarine platform with wide range of intelligence capabilities, in addition to its combat role.

Among the strategic aims that have influenced the re-design of the K-329 Belgorod is the desire to set up and exploit the Arctic shelf as a major geo-strategy objective for the Kremlin in the short to medium term.

[29] At the time of the submarine's commissioning in July 2022, it was reported that she would operate in an initial experimental role with the Northern Fleet, before transferring to the Pacific.