The Diplomat:
Russia’s Strategic Missile Force (SMF) inducted 80 new improved Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) into service over the last five years, the SMF Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Alexander Ponomarenko said in late December.
“Large-scale efforts were taken during this period to rearm troops with new missile systems. The troops received over 80 Yars missile system launchers, which made it possible to place 12 missile regiments on combat alert,” he said according to Russian state media. The statement could not be independently verified.
The Topol MR (aka SR-24 Yars/NATO reporting name SS-27 Mod2), first revealed in 2010, is an improved variant of the Topol-M (aka RS12M2/NATO reporting name SS-27), a three-stage solid fueled ICBM with an estimated range of over 11,000 kilometers (6,835 miles). As I explained in January 2017, “The Yars, reportedly fitted with more advanced decoys and countermeasures than the Topol-M, and featuring a higher speed, has been specifically designed to evade Western anti-ballistic missile defense systems.”
