Currently, Russia is experiencing significant setbacks in its efforts to modernize its strategic nuclear forces, as reported by the German news website merkur.de.
On November 1, tests of the Yars intercontinental missile in Russia appear to have been unsuccessful, even though this missile is the main element of the ground component of the country’s strategic nuclear forces. This information comes from the Ukrainian defense intelligence service.
The launch of the Yars missile from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in the Archangel region, aimed at the Kura range on the Kamchatka Peninsula, was conducted by the combat crew of the 33rd Missile Army of the Russian Strategic Missile Troops. According to the Ukrainian defense intelligence service, the Yars missile, similar to previous exercises on October 25, deviated from its intended course. Also, on October 25, a test launch of the Bulava ballistic missile from a Borei-class submarine was unsuccessful, which again calls into question the reliability of this missile, as reported by the defense-focused online magazine Defense Express.
Target on Peninsula Hit
However, Russia conducted another test of the Bulava missile on November 1, and according to the Russian Ministry of Defense, this test was successful. The ballistic missile was launched from an underwater position off the Russian north coast in the Barents Sea and hit a target on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East, which was a thousand kilometers away.
These claims have not yet been independently verified and/or confirmed. For this reason, they should be considered with caution. In war, it can be advantageous for the parties involved to deliberately spread false information in order to strengthen their own position or weaken the opponent’s.
Image: kremlin.ru, 2018 inauguration of Vladimir Putin 53, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (Image size changed)
