Moscow —
Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that what he called the world’s most powerful missile system — dubbed “Satan II” by NATO — will be ready for “combat duty” by the end of the year after a successful test on Tuesday.
The Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile has an expected range over 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles) and can reportedly carry up to 16 independently targeted nuclear warheads, according to the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, a US-based nonprofit. Putin claims the range extends to more than 35,000 kilometers (21,750 miles).
“The combined yield of the payload is more than four times greater than that of any existing Western counterpart,” Putin said.
By comparison, the United States’ LGM-30 Minuteman ICBM has a range of about 11,000 kilometers (6,835 miles) and is deployed with only one warhead, though it was designed to carry three.
Russian state television broadcast footage of Sergei Karakayev, commander of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, reporting to Putin on what he described as a “successful” test launch.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the silo-launched Sarmat is the long-awaited replacement for Russia’s SS-18 ICBM, which was first deployed under Soviet rule in the 1970s and codenamed “Satan” by NATO.
The RS-28 Sarmat, which the alliance calls Satan II, has been in development since 2011 and has faced difficulties in testing, delaying its original deployment plan for 2018, the CSIS says.
After a failed test in September 2024, satellite images showed a crater about 200 feet wide at the launch site at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the northwestern Arkhangelsk region in Russia.
Russian telegram channel Astra — labeled a foreign agent by authorities — injected a note of skepticism, pointing out that Putin has spoken about the nuclear-capable missile’s imminent readiness at least 10 times since 2021.
The Sarmat missile is liquid-fueled, reports say, meaning it has to be fueled shortly before launching, a disadvantage compared with solid-fueled missiles.
Russia maintains the world’s largest inventory of nuclear warheads, with more than 5,500, according to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. The US has just over 5,000 warheads, the organization says.
The timing of the Sarmat test is noteworthy, coming shortly after a muted Victory Day Parade on May 9.
The parade which commemorates the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War II, was the most scaled down since 2008, when Putin made it an annual event. No military hardware was displayed for the first time in nearly 20 years. Russian authorities pared down the event amid security concerns following Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russian territory, especially on oil refineries.
Putin, however, told journalists the parade went ahead without showcasing weaponry because the Russian armed forces “should focus on the decisive defeat of the enemy” in what Russia calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Forgoing the traditional show of force, giant screens in Moscow’s Red Square broadcast a series of pre-produced videos that state media said were from the front lines.
The Kremlin also released footage Monday of Putin driving to personally pick up one of his old schoolteachers, Vera Gurevich, from a hotel lobby with a bouquet of flowers and an enthusiastic embrace before taking her for dinner at the Kremlin. Putin invited Gurevich to attend the Victory Day parade in Moscow and spend a few days in the capital, the Kremlin said.
The Kremlin has dismissed a European intelligence agency report, obtained by CNN and other media outlets, that said the Kremlin has dramatically increased the personal security around Putin and reduced the number of locations that he regularly visits.
Brad Lendon reported from Seoul.
