"The Sarmat strategic complex has been put on combat duty," Borisov said during an educational event.
Russia tested the nuclear-capable Sarmat missile throughout 2022. Last December, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia will maintain combat readiness and improve the country’s nuclear triad, which he called the main guarantor of its sovereignty.
Sarmat is a heavy missile system with an intercontinental liquid-fueled ballistic missile weighing more than 200 tonnes. The system is intended to replace the Voevoda (also known as Satan) missiles in Russia's strategic missile forces.
The new missile is capable of hitting targets at long ranges using various flight trajectories and is guaranteed to overcome any existing and future missile defense systems, the Russian Defense Ministry said. With the longest target engagement range, Sarmat is also expected to strengthen the combat capabilities of Russia's strategic nuclear forces.
Experimental development work on the Sarmat project began in 2011, while the first test launch of the Sarmat missile was carried out in April 2022.