This is not the first time that Russia has failed in the tests of the RS-28 Sarmat nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile. Pavlo Lakiychuk, head of security programs at the Center for Global Studies "Strategy XXI", said on Radio NV that this process can be evaluated by the number of explosions. In February of last year, "Sarmat" suffered an explosion, but the Russian Ministry of Defense announced in September 2023 that it would be put into operation. Lakiychuk believes that such haste is an attempt to show the world a new superweapon and a component of Putin's nuclear blackmail.
The expert compared the capabilities of Russia and North Korea in the development of similar ballistic missiles. He emphasized that North Korean missiles are much more effective, despite the fact that they are made of the same components as Russian ones. Lakiychuk pointed to two main reasons for the low effectiveness of the Russian nuclear program: the lack of a powerful theoretical and practical school and corruption schemes in the management vertical.
According to him, the Russians believe that they will be able to cope on their own, but this is a misconception. "North Korea is not a perfect example, but it shows better results compared to the Russians. And greed, which permeates the entire vertical, affects the quality of products," said Lakiychuk.
Not so long ago, during regular tests of "Sarmat", an explosion occurred during refueling at the test site, as a result of which a large crater remained. The Institute for the Study of War reported that on October 7, 2023, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation noted the production of an intercontinental ballistic missile, which confirms Vladimir Putin's previous statements about "successful tests".
The situation around Sarmat demonstrates serious problems in Russia's nuclear program and indicates that the country is still trying to show strength on the international stage, despite its failures.
