Vladimir Putin has showcased a terrifying intercontinental ballistic missile nicknamed The Sceptre capable of hitting targets at a range of more than 5,000 miles.
In the latest episode of the Russian president’s sabre rattling, his military released a new clip showing the 40 foot nuclear weapon, officially named RSM-56 Bulava, being tested at an undisclosed location.
Footage released by the Russian military shows an enormous explosion under the water before the missile breaks the surface, with a trail of smoke behind it.
Such tests have been seen as aimed at sending a message to the West with tensions spiking over Russia’s ongoing war on Ukraine.
Seven Borei-class submarines are believed to be carrying a total of 16 missiles, with several of them being launched during the footage.
Each one is thought to have a launch mass of 37 tonnes.
Russia claimed to have tested the Bulava missiles successfully in November.
The first signs of Russian success with the Bulava missiles came last November as the defence ministry said a submarine had successfully test-launched the weapons.
On that occasion, military chiefs claimed they had fired the projectile from an underwater position in the White Sea off northern Russia, hitting a target thousands of miles away on the Kamchatka peninsula.
The missile was developed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology with work getting underway in the 1990s.
Speaking to state-aligned Russian news agency Tass yesterday, Institute Chief Designer Yury Solomonov said the missile had been accepted into service by the Russian Armed Forces.
He explained: “On May 7 of this year, a decree was signed on accepting the Bulava missile system for service.”
Speaking on Victory Day in Moscow, Putin boasted that his nuclear forces were in a state of readiness.
