In Russia, they pointed out the invulnerability of the Sarmat to any means of counteraction

The Russian Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is currently invulnerable to existing missile defense systems. Military expert Alexey Zhivov told Izvestia about this on May 12.

According to the expert, the Sarmat is a fundamentally new heavy rocket that replaced the Soviet Voyevoda missile, known in the West as the SS-18. He stressed that the new development was completely created in Russia and does not depend on Ukrainian production facilities.

"This is the most powerful, heaviest and longest—range rocket, which takes the largest amount of payload," he said.

Zhivov explained that the rocket is capable of carrying up to 10 tons of payload, including Avangard hypersonic units, false targets and electronic countermeasures. According to him, this is what makes intercepting the Sarmat extremely difficult.

The expert noted that the most vulnerable stage for intercontinental missiles is traditionally considered to be the launch site of the trajectory, when the rocket exits the shaft and gains speed. However, in the case of Sarmat, according to Zhivov, new technical solutions have been applied.

"Now, due to innovations, Sarmat is almost impossible to intercept even at the starting point of the route, which makes it currently invulnerable to any means of counteraction," Zhivov said.

He also stressed that the missile is an essential element of the Russian nuclear deterrence system and affects the strategic balance of power in the world.

According to Zhivov, successful tests of the complex have already taken place, and the rocket itself is ready for service. The expert added that the appearance of the Sarmat and Avangard hypersonic units should "cool the ardor" of NATO countries in matters of pressure on Russia.

Severe test: with the launch of the Sarmat, the Russian Federation proved its superiority in nuclear missile technology

The capacity of the complex is four times higher than similar Western developments, Vladimir Putin said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on the same day that Russia had notified the United States and other countries about the tests of the Sarmat missile system. Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed that the Sarmat is the most powerful missile system in the world. According to the head of state, the total capacity of Sarmat is more than four times higher than that of any Western analogues.