 |
| President Vladimir Putin Threatens Nuclear War, How Strong is Russia's Satan 2 Missile with US Minuteman? |
Moskow - Russian President Vladimir Putin has explicitly threatened to use nuclear weapons in his war on Ukraine. Moscow then boasts the RS-28 Sarmat or Satan 2 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) as one of its flagship weapons to send nuclear warheads into enemy territory.
“The territorial integrity of our homeland, our independence and freedom will be guaranteed, I will emphasize this again, by all means at our disposal. And those who try to blackmail us with nuclear weapons should know that the wind that blows can be turned against them. I want to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction, and some components are more modern than the NATO countries.” Putin said in his speech Wednesday morning.
Read Also: Donald Trump Says Russia-Ukraine Conflict Could Become World War III
Vladimir Degtyar, CEO of the JSC Makeyev Design Bureau, which makes the Satan 2 missile, told the TASS office that this missile has no equal in the world. "The missile will leave the silo under any circumstances and fulfill its duties with 100 percent certainty," he said.
The RS-28 Sarmat replaces the ICBM R-36 Voevoda, codenamed "Satan" by NATO. Russia completed its test of the Satan 2 missile on April 20, about three years after the capability was introduced by Putin. The Pentagon said after the Satan 2 ICBM test that Russia correctly informed the United States under its News START treaty obligations. "Such testing is routine and not surprising," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said April 20. "We do not view the test as a threat to the United States or its allies.
The Ministry of Defense remains focused on Russia's unlawful and unwarranted aggression against Ukraine." After awarding production contracts to the Makeyev Design Bureau and NPOMash in early 2011, Russia reportedly completed its first missile prototype in late 2015. In December 2017, technical difficulties resulted from the test. The first ejection silo.The Demon 2 missile is 116 feet long and weighs 220 tons.
The think tank The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reports that its development began in the early 2000s. It can reportedly carry up to 15 light nuclear warheads as part of the MIRV (Multiple Independently Targetable Re-Entry Vehicles).
MIRVs were developed in the early 1960s to help missiles deliver multiple nuclear warheads to different targets. "In contrast to traditional missiles, which carry one warhead, the MIRV can carry multiple warheads," CSIS said in its report.
Warheads can also reportedly be fired from missiles at different speeds and directions, as some can hit targets as far as 932 miles (1,500 kilometers) away. CSIS reports that the Satan 2 missile has an estimated range of between 6,200 to 11,180 miles (10,000 to 18,000 kilometers).
US Minuteman Nuclear Missiles
In comparison, the US has the LGM-30 Minuteman ICBM. The missile weighs about 79,400 pounds and has a diameter of 5.5 feet, about 4 feet smaller than the Demon 2 missile. The Minuteman can cover a range of about 8,100 miles (13,000 kilometers).
A US Air Force spokesman told Newsweek that the current ICBM force consists of 400 Minuteman III missiles in the 90th Missile Wing at F.E. Air Force Base. Warren, Wyoming; 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana; and the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota.
The active force inventory is 400, with no missiles available for reserve or the Air National Guard. John Erath, senior policy director for the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, told The Washington Post after Russia's test of the ICBM Satan 2 that Putin's threat was more concerning than the weapons themselves.
Experts argue in Defense News, however, that ICBMs represent a critical component of America's nuclear deterrent and that the US must modernize to compete with Russia and China. Currently, China has the Dongfeng ICBM. "The characteristics of the modernized ICBM of the nuclear triad help prevent the enemy from launching a nuclear attack, prevent nuclear war and make America safer," say experts regarding the ICBM's ability to be responsive and provide a "fence" in anti-submarine warfare.