Classifying Kirov, Alaska and Deutschland beyond treaty labels

Should the Kirov class be considered a modern battlecruiser?

Battlecruiser is understandable modern shorthand, but armoured cruiser better expresses the intermediate design space also occupied by Alaska and Deutschland.

Kirov is commonly called a battlecruiser because the modern vocabulary offers few familiar alternatives. The same problem applies to the Alaska and Deutschland classes, which exceed ordinary heavy-cruiser expectations without becoming true battleships or battlecruisers. Armoured cruiser provides a useful historical bridge for this space between heavy cruiser and battlecruiser. This distinction separates convenient public labels from a design's actual armament, protection and intended role.