MOSCOW, April 20, 2022 (AFP) – The Russian military announced today that it has successfully carried out the first test of a single-shot of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, a next-generation and very long-range weapon that will be in service. President Vladimir Putin as a warning to the country’s enemies.

“It is a unique weapon that will increase the military potential of our Armed Forces, guarantee Russia’s security against external threats, and make those who threaten our country with unbridled and aggressive rhetoric think once again,” Putin said. Scale.

“I emphasize that only nationally made sets, components and parts were used in the creation of Sarmat,” he added in a television commercial.

According to Putin, the fifth-generation heavy intercontinental ballistic missile Sarmat “could defeat all modern anti-aircraft systems.”

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a video that the launch took place at 15:12 local time (GMT) from the center of Plesetsk in the Arcangel region (northwest).

He said the missile hit its target at the far eastern Kura polygon, more than 5,000 kilometers away, on Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula.

“When the test program is complete, Sarmat will become part of Russia’s strategic forces,” Konashenkov said. Said.

“Strategic” forces, in their broadest definition, are tasked, among other activities, with intervening in the event of war.

This weapon is part of a series of other missiles presented as “invincible” by Vladimir Putin in 2018. Among them are the Kinjal and Avangard hypersonic missiles.

US spokesman said no surprise

However, the Pentagon stated that the test carried out by Russia is not seen as a threat by the United States and its allies.

His spokesman, John Kirby, said Moscow had “appropriately informed” Washington about testing under its nuclear deal obligations, and therefore “it was no surprise”.

In March, Moscow claimed for the first time that it had used the Kinjal against targets in Ukraine.

Weighing more than 200 tons, the Sarmat theoretically outperforms its predecessor Voevoda missile with a range of 11,000 km.

In 2019, Putin said the Sarmat had “virtually no range limits” and could “reach its targets from the north and south poles”.

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