BRIC Team reports: Russia has tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile as part of its efforts to modernise its nuclear forces, and President Vladimir Putin has hailed the launch just days after his claim that the fighting in Ukraine is nearing an end.“This is the most powerful missile in the world,” Putin said of the Sarmat missile on Tuesday, adding that the combined power of its individually targeted warheads is more than four times that of any of its Western counterparts.Putin said the nuclear-armed Sarmat missile will enter combat service at the end of the year. The CSIS in an April 2024 report also gave the lower number as its range.
Western estimates placed the range of the Voyevoda at 16,000km (about 9,900 miles).The range claimed by Putin is almost a full lap of the planet. That would mean the missile could theoretically hit nearly any target in the world.The Russian president also claimed the Sarmat is capable of suborbital flight, which means it could reach outer space but could not travel fast enough to remain there or complete a full revolution around the Earth.Both of the cited ranges are more than enough to hit any city in the United States from Russian territory and farther. For context, Moscow is 7,500km (4,660 miles) away from New York, and about 9,700km (6,030 miles) away from Phoenix, Arizona.
Background
What other new weapons has Russia unveiled?Moscow’s newest weapons include the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle, capable of flying 27 times faster than the speed of sound. The first models have already entered service.Russia has also commissioned the new nuclear-capable Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile and has used its conventionally armed version twice to strike Ukraine. This is part of Ukraine’s strategy in recent weeks to target Russia’s energy facilities in a bid to starve it of revenues funding the war.Zelenskyy said the attack was made in retaliation for Russia’s overnight attacks on Ukraine.
Key facts
- The CSIS in an April 2024 report also gave the lower number as its range.
- Western estimates placed the range of the Voyevoda at 16,000km (about 9,900 miles).The range claimed by Putin is almost a full lap of the planet.
- For context, Moscow is 7,500km (4,660 miles) away from New York, and about 9,700km (6,030 miles) away from Phoenix, Arizona.
