Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday that Moscow would deploy its nuclear-capable Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile by the end of the year.
The announcement, made during a televised meeting with top military officials, marked Russia’s latest attempt to showcase its next-generation strategic weapons programme amid ongoing tensions with the West, according to a Bloomberg report.
“This is the most powerful missile in the world,” Putin said in his address. He added that the combined power of the Sarmat’s individually targeted warheads is more than four times higher than of any of its Western counterparts, according to a report by The Associated Press.
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Putin calls it ‘most powerful in the world’
The military conducted a successful test of the weapon, the commander of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, Sergey Karakayev, told Putin during the meeting.
Karakayev said the first regiment equipped with the missile would be placed on combat duty by the end of the year in Russia’s Krasnoyarsk region.
“It’s the most powerful missile system in the world,” Putin said during the meeting. “The total yield of the delivered warhead is more than four times greater than that of any existing, even the most powerful, Western equivalent.”
The Russian leader’s remarks came shortly after a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine ended.
The truce, announced by US President Donald Trump, had enabled Russia to hold its World War II Victory Day celebrations without disruption. On Tuesday, both Russia and Ukraine resumed attacks against each other.
Repeated delays, setbacks for Russia’s Sarmat in past years
Despite Moscow’s latest declaration, Russia’s Sarmat missile programme has faced repeated delays and setbacks in recent years. The missile was originally expected to enter service by the end of 2022, according to Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news agency.
Although Russian officials announced in 2023 that the intercontinental ballistic missile had been placed on combat duty, Tuesday’s statement appeared to indicate that the deployment process was still incomplete.
The Sarmat missile programme was first publicly unveiled by Russia in 2018 as part of the country’s next-generation strategic weapons initiative. Russia carried out the first test launch of the missile in April 2022, just two months after the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
According to Pavel Podvig, the latest launch marked only the second successful test of the missile after an earlier success in 2022. The programme also reportedly suffered at least two failed tests in the intervening period.
“It’s a political investment,” Podvig said. “It won’t affect the balance of power or nuclear deterrence policy in any significant way. From a strictly military perspective, it doesn’t matter much.”
During the meeting, Putin also highlighted several other strategic weapons systems developed by Russia in recent years. These included the Avangard hypersonic missile system, the Kinzhal air-launched hypersonic missile, the Oreshnik medium-range missile system, and the Poseidon unmanned underwater vehicle.
Putin added that work was nearing completion on the Burevestnik global-range cruise missile, which is powered by a miniature nuclear propulsion unit.
