Russia to Deploy Sarmat Missiles by Autumn in ‘Historic’ Nuclear Upgrade

Dmitry Rogozin, head of Russia’s space agency Roscosmos, said in an interview with the Rossiya 24 TV channel on Saturday that the target deployment date for the Sarmat missile, which is capable of mounting nuclear strikes against the United States, is an ambitious one.

“We plan to do it no later than autumn,” he said.

Rogozin went on to say that the missiles would be deployed with a unit in the Krasnoyarsk region of Siberia, about 3,000 km (1,860 miles) east of Moscow, adding that they would be placed at the same sites and in the same silos as the Soviet-era Voyevoda missiles they are replacing, something that would save “colossal resources and time.” 

He also said the launch of the Russian “super weapon” is an historic event that would guarantee the security of Russia’s children and grandchildren for the next 30-40 years.

Russia successfully test-launched the Sarmat missile, a long-awaited addition to the country’s nuclear arsenal, from a silo launcher in Plesetsk State on April 21.  

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated the army on the successful launch of the Sarmat, calling it “a big, significant event” for Russia’s defense industry.

He also said the unique weapon has the highest tactical and technical characteristics and is capable of overcoming all modern means of anti-missile defense, adding that it would make Moscow’s enemies “think twice.”

The Sarmat is capable of carrying 10 or more nuclear warheads and decoys, and of striking targets thousands of miles away in the United States or Europe.

The test of the Sarmat, which has been under development for years, came at a moment of extreme geopolitical tension over the war in Ukraine.