Russian President Vladimir Putin touted Moscow’s newest nuclear missile during a Wednesday address of Russia’s military academies, saying the ballistic arsenal could be ready for deployment by the end of the year.
The missile is recognized as “Satan-2” by NATO members.
In Kremlin circles, however, the 14-story-tall missile is known as “RS-28 Sarmat,” and allegedly has nuclear capabilities that cannot be matched by other countries.
“The Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missile was successfully tested,” Putin told the Moscow graduating class. “It is planned that by the end of this year, the first such complex will be put on combat duty.”
In April, Russia announced the inaugural test launch of Satan-2/RS-28; and approximately a month later, Dmitry Rogozin, head of Russia’s state space agency, Roscosmos, said the country’s arsenal would soon include 50 of the new missiles.
“I suggest that aggressors speak to us more politely,” Rogozin reportedly quipped at the time.
And in May, the Kremlin threatened to deploy Satan-2 missiles to strike Finland, the U.K. and the United States, after Finnish President Sauli Niinisto signaled his country’s intention to join NATO.
“If Finland wants to join this bloc, then our goal is absolutely legitimate — to question the existence of this state. This is logical,” said Aleksey Zhuravlyov, deputy chairman of the Russian parliament’s defense committee.
Also, “if the United States threatens our state, it’s good: Here is the Sarmat (Satan-2 missile) for you, and there will be nuclear ashes from you if you think that Russia should not exist,” Zhuravlyov continued.
“And Finland says that it is at one with the USA. Well, get in line.”
The Satan-2, which was first introduced in 2018, can reportedly carry 10 or more nuclear warheads and decoys, and has an estimated range between 6,200 and 11,800 miles.
Such theoretical capabilities would allow the Kremlin to hit targets anywhere in the world.
In his Wednesday speech, Putin said his administration was committed to modernizing and strengthening Russia’s armed forces amid “potential military threats and risks.”
Putin added, “Among the priority areas is equipping the troops with new weapon systems that will determine the combat effectiveness of the army and navy in the years and decades to come.”
According to The National Interest, America’s most devastating nuclear bomb — the B83 — has the following capabilities:
“The B83 is one of two so-called ‘dumb’ or unguided nuclear bombs that the United States maintains as a part of its post-Cold War Enduring Stockpile arsenal. Along with intercontinental ballistic missiles and other smaller nuclear-capable bombs, stocks of the B83 are kept in case of emergency. It replaced a number of older American free-falling weapons, and is big.
“At nearly 1 1/2 tons, the B83 is the largest nuclear bomb that the United States currently keeps. Its nuclear tiled is 1.2 megatons — significantly more powerful than either of the nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. It’s big, it’s powerful, and it’s had a colorful history.”
Via Newsmax