Tensions escalate, Putin tests ballistic missile.
At a time when tensions with the West were rising, the Russian Ministry of Defense released a short video documenting the successful testing of a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), codenamed Sarmat.
Right at that momentstressWith Western tensions rising, the Russian Ministry of Defense has released a short video documenting the successful testing of a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), codenamed Sarmat.
According to the video, the Sarmat rocket launch (known in the West as Satan 2) just took place at Russia's Plesetsk cosmodrome.
Russian media reported that this was the second successful launch of the Sarmat missile. The missile was first tested in December 2017.
Experts describe the Sarmat missile as capable of striking targets in both the Arctic and Antarctic. The current RS-28 Sarmat version is designed to replace the former Soviet Union's Voevoda ICBM (NATO often calls it SS-18 Satan).
In a speech earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin proudly declared that the Sarmat missile is one of the new weapons that will render NATO's defense systems "completely useless." He said this ICBM weighs 200 tons and has a range greater than Satan, allowing it to strike targets anywhere in the world.
The Kremlin leader added that Sarmat also carries more nuclear warheads, making it significantly more powerful than its predecessor.
In 2016, the Russian news agency TASS reported that the Sarmat had a range of over 11,000 km and carried a warhead weighing up to 100 tons.
However, the US has remained calm in the face of Russia's new weapons tests. Following a phone call with his Russian counterpart last week, US President Donald Trump revealed that they had discussed efforts to limit an arms race.
