Status: 03.09.2023, 05:21 a.m.
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Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had long been talking about the new Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile. Now Moscow is announcing its commissioning.
Moscow – Russia is bringing "Satan 2" into play in the Ukraine war. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had already spoken in June about the new Russian nuclear missile "Sarmat". Now, according to official data, Russia has put the powerful RS-28 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile into service.
The weapon stationed in underground missile bays with the NATO designation SS-X-30 "Satan 2" can carry up to 15 individually controllable nuclear warheads, according to Russian information. U.S. military officials are more likely to assume up to ten warheads. These are the Sarmat key data:
- 208 tonnes total weight
- Range: up to 18,000 kilometers
- Successor to the RS-1980 (NATO: SS-20 Satan) type from the 18s
New Russian Sarmat missiles should be ready for use "in the near future." (Archive photo) © RU-RTR/dpa
"Satan 2" in the Ukraine war: Russia produces rocket in Siberia
In April 2022, the rocket was already tested by Russia. At the time, Putin said that the Satan 2 was the heaviest intercontinental ballistic missile owned by an army – and that it would be delivered to Russia's nuclear forces as early as autumn 2022.
In April 2022, the Russian Armed Forces had tested the RS-28. The rocket took off from Plesetsk in the European north of Russia, the explosive dummies reached their targets in Kura on the Far Eastern peninsula of Kamchatka. Serial production takes place in Krasnoyarsk in Siberia. (dpa/frs)