Russia Developing New ICBM To Penetrate US Missile Shield

Russia is developing a new Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) that can penetrate the US missile shield.

“Russia is carrying out active work on improving its means of overcoming the missile shield,” Russia’s Strategic Missile Force (SMF) Commander Sergey Karakayev was quoted as saying by Tass Tuesday.

"This is conditioned by the fact that the United States is not stopping after what it has achieved and continues improving its missile defense system, including the deployment of its elements in Europe. That is why, special attention in the development of new missile complexes is paid to the issue of overcoming the missile shield," Karakayev said.

Capabilities of Russian ballistic missiles increase "by reducing ICBM’s acceleration section, introducing new types of warheads with the flight path that is difficult to predict and new means of overcoming the missile defense system," Karakayev went on. Russian missiles are also capable of delivering warheads via energy optimal trajectory and of striking from multiple directions, "which forces the opposing side to ensure perimeter missile defense," he concluded.

"This is achieved both through the ICBM’s shorter acceleration phase and new types of warheads with a hard-to-predict flight trajectory and new means of overcoming the missile shield," the commander said.

According to the official, threats from the US missile defense system in Europe do not critically reduce combat capabilities of the Russian Strategic Missile Forces because Russian missiles are constantly upgraded.

"Threats from the European segment of missile defense system for SMF are limited and do not critically reduce combat capabilities of SMF," Karakayev said.