MOSCOW: Russia's new RS-28 Sarmat Intercontinental Ballistic Missile has successfully launched from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in the country's north.
According to Russian Times, the test launch on Wednesday was the first in a series of testing required for Russia's strategic forces to accept the new weapon. The missile flew across the country before landing in Russia's Far East at a test location. "inert warheads landed down in a selected spot at the Kura training ground on the Kamchatka Peninsula," reports read.
The R-36M/R-36M2 Voevoda ICBMs will be replaced by the new silo-based strategic missile.
The Sarmat, in comparison to its predecessor, can carry more weapons and be equipped with new sorts of warheads, such as "hypersonic glider units," according to the military. President Vladimir Putin praised the military for a successful test launch, calling it a "event of immense significance" for Russia.
"The new system possesses superior tactical and technical features, and it is capable of breaching all modern anti-missile systems. There are no equivalents in the world, and there won't be for a long time "Putin said. The new missile trials are expected to be finished later this year.
The Sarmat will then be commissioned and the first munitions will be delivered to the country's strategic missile forces.
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