Russia understands the need to replace existing ballistic missiles in service with more modern. Although their development does not go quickly and smoothly, the transfer of these weapons to the military will give the Russian Federation a tangible advantage over the United States.
This is what American expert Caleb Larson argues in his article, published by the American edition of National Interest.
Today, the Soviet RS-36M Voevoda is considered the longest-range ballistic missile in service with the Russian army., or according to the NATO classification SS-18 “Satan”. “Voevoda” – silo-based ICBM with a nuclear warhead, having a range of about 10 thousands of kilometers. This powerful weapon is already obsolete and needs to be replaced.
Instead, they are going to adopt the Sarmat into service.. The exact performance characteristics of this intercontinental ballistic missile are publicly available, as Larsen states, no. But, perhaps, the flight range of the new missile will be greater, than "Satan". "Sarmat" is capable of carrying not only a universal nuclear warhead, but also 10 large warheads or 16 smaller size. Besides, the missile can be used as a means of delivering guided hypersonic warheads (UBB), capable of maneuvering. They are still under development right now.
The creation of Sarmat began in the 2000s, and to 2015 the first prototype was assembled. During the tests, a number of technical problems were discovered, due to which the launch date for the rocket was postponed several times. That’s why the American expert writes about, what's work on “Sarmatian” takes decades.
Initially calculated, that "Sarmat" will enter service in 2018 year. Now the due date is considered 2021 year, but not excluded, that he will be pushed aside again.
maybe, developers think, that the rush to transfer such serious weapons to the troops is inappropriate. It is better to eliminate all the shortcomings now and save the Russian military from future possible problems, Why rush to put the rocket into operation?.
