Russia to Field Missile Defense-Evading ICBM by 2018

Topol-M

May 5th, 2011 MDAA

Russia intends no later than 2018 to field an all-new ICBM with the capacity to evade missile defenses, including systems based in outer space, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday. The long-range heavy ballistic missile would be an entirely new weapon and not a copy of the existing Voevoda system, one-time Russian nuclear missile chief Viktor Yesin said. The planned fifth-generation ICBM would be designed to defeat missile defenses, while its launch facilities are also to be shielded with protective antimissile systems, Yesin said. The ICBM could be fired “within seconds” of a launch order, he added. The new ICBM, combined with the current Yars and Topol-M missiles, would establish for Russia a first-strike capability with the ability to eliminate threats posed by an opponent’s antimissile systems, Yesin said.