During the visit of the U.S. President Joe Biden to Kyiv, the Russians unsuccessfully tested the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile.
CNN writes about it.
According to one of the U.S. official, Russia notified the United States in advance of the launch. Another official said the test did not pose a danger to the United States and that the U.S. did not view the test as an escalation. At the same time, it was the tests of a missile capable of carrying several nuclear warheads that turned out to be unsuccessful, officials said. If the launch had been successful, then, according to the Americans, Vladimir Putin would have mentioned it in his address to the Federal Assembly.
The Sarmat missile, according to the Russians, has a maximum range of 18 000 km and is capable of carrying up to 10 warheads with a total capacity of 8 megatons.
- On February 21, 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin informed about that the Russian Federation was suspending its participation in the Strategic Offensive Arms Reduction Treaty. Putin emphasized that it is about a suspension, not a complete withdrawal from the agreement. The reason is that other Western nuclear powers continue to develop their nuclear weapons and insist on access to Russian nuclear facilities. In addition, he stated that the U.S. allegedly continues to develop new nuclear weapons and is preparing for tests.
- The bilateral consultative commission, which deals with practical issues of the implementation of the Treaty on the SOAR, last met in Geneva in October 2021. In the summer of 2022, the Russian side did not allow the American delegation access to its nuclear missiles.