World - Russia's nuclear deterrent in good shape;Medvedev

Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: Russia has successfully test-fired four long-range nuclear-capable missiles over the weekend in an unprecedented show of force that has not been seen since the Cold War era.

On Sunday, two nuclear submarines deployed in the Sea of Okhotsk, north of Japan, and the Barents Sea, northeast of Norway, simultaneously test-fired Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM), which hit targets at the opposite extreme of the country.

A third missile, Topol, was fired from a mobile land-launcher at the Plisetsk space centre in northwest Russia. A day earlier, a nuclear submarine test-fired the new ICBM Sineva in the Barents Sea.

Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev, who was present at the Sineva’s launch on Saturday, and watched the Topol launch on Sunday, said the country’s nuclear deterrent was “in good shape” and “new weapon systems” will be inducted in the future. The missile launches were part of the “Stability 2008” war games, the biggest strategic manoeuvres by Russia since the break-up of the Soviet Union. The exercise involved nearly 50,000 troops and over 7,000 pieces of heavy-war gear, including aircraft, ships and nuclear missiles.