Russia Tests Nuke-Capable 'Peerless' Missile

Russia said on Wednesday it had conducted a first test launch of its Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, a new addition to its nuclear arsenal which President Vladimir Putin said would give Moscow's enemies something to think about, Mark Trevelyan reported for Reuters.

Photo Insert: The test comes as Ukraine reported that more than 20,000 Russian troops had died in the bloody invasion that Putin launched on February 24, 2022.

Putin was shown on television being told by the military that the missile had been launched from Plesetsk in the country's northwest and hit targets in the Kamchatka peninsula in the Far East.

The Sarmat has been under development for years and so its test launch is not a surprise for the West, but it comes at a moment of extreme geopolitical tension due to Russia's eight-week-old war in Ukraine.

"The new complex has the highest tactical and technical characteristics and is capable of overcoming all modern means of anti-missile defense. It has no analogs in the world and won't have for a long time to come," Putin bragged.

"This truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure Russia's security from external threats and provide food for thought for those who, in the heat of frenzied aggressive rhetoric, try to threaten our country."

The Sarmat is a new heavy Intercontinental Ballistic Missile that Russia is expected to deploy with 10 or more warheads on each missile, according to the US Congressional Research Service.

The test comes as Ukraine reported that more than 20,000 Russian troops had died in the bloody invasion that Putin launched on February 24, 2022, with Ukraine sinking the Russian missile cruiser Moskva and collecting sensitive equipment from a downed Su-35 warplane that had advanced missile targeting and jamming systems.

US and British experts gave examined the equipment and secured sensitive information about them.

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