Russia Test-Fires Sarmat ICBM

Russia test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile Tuesday as part of its long-running effort to modernize its nuclear forces. President Vladimir Putin hailed the launch of the Sarmat missile and declared it would enter combat service at the end of this year.

" He added that the combined power of its individually targeted warheads is more than four times higher than that of any Western counterpart. The missile is designed to replace the aging Soviet-built Voyevoda system. The test launch occurred just days after Putin stated during Victory Day commemorations that the fighting in Ukraine is coming to an end.

After overseeing a military parade on Red Square on Saturday that for the first time in nearly two decades did not include heavy weapons, Putin made the declaration about the Ukraine conflict. Since taking power in 2000, Putin has overseen a broad upgrade of the country's nuclear triad.

This has included deploying hundreds of new land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles, commissioning new nuclear submarines and modernizing nuclear-capable bombers. Russia's nuclear modernization prompted the United States to begin its own costly overhaul of its arsenal.

The last remaining nuclear arms pact between the two countries expired in February, removing all caps on their atomic arsenals for the first time in more than 50 years.

Prior to Tuesday's test, the missile had only one known successful launch and suffered a major explosion during a failed test in 2024. Putin said the Sarmat matches the power of the Voyevoda but offers higher precision. The missile is capable of suborbital flight, according to Putin, giving it a range exceeding 21,700 miles.

He said this allows it to evade prospective missile defenses. The Sarmat forms part of a group of new weapons first revealed by Putin in 2018. Russia has also fielded the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle, which travels 27 times the speed of sound and has entered service.

Officials have commissioned a new nuclear-capable intermediate-range ballistic missile and used a conventionally armed version twice against targets in Ukraine.

Putin announced that development of the nuclear-armed Poseidon underwater drone and the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile are in their final stages. The Poseidon is designed to detonate near enemy coastlines and generate a radioactive tsunami.

The Burevestnik's nuclear propulsion gives it virtually unlimited range. Putin has framed these systems as a necessary response to U.S. missile defense efforts. Those defenses followed Washington's 2001 withdrawal from a Cold War-era treaty limiting such systems.

Russian military planners have long worried that a robust shield could encourage a disarming first strike. "We were forced to consider ensuring our strategic security in the face of the new reality and the need to maintain a strategic balance of power and parity," Putin said.

The Sarmat test comes amid heightened nuclear tensions. The United States and Russia agreed in February to reestablish high-level military communications that had been suspended since late 2021.

“This is the most powerful missile in the world.”

“We were forced to consider ensuring our strategic security in the face of the new reality and the need to maintain a strategic balance of power and parity.”