MOSCOW, June 21 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia's new generation of Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missiles, which are capable of carrying 10 or more nuclear warheads, would soon be deployed for combat duty.
In a speech to new graduates of military academies, Putin stressed the importance of Russia's "triad" of nuclear forces that can be launched from land, sea or air.
"The most important task here is the development of the nuclear triad, which is a key guarantee of Russia's military security and global stability," he said.
Putin has repeatedly said since the start of the Ukraine conflict that Russia is ready to use all means, including nuclear weapons, to defend its "territorial integrity".
The new Sarmat missile is designed to carry out nuclear strikes on targets thousands of missiles away in the United States or Europe.
Persons:
Vladimir Putin, Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Dmitry Rogozin, Rogozin, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones
Organizations:
Strategic Missile Forces, Defence, George's, Russia, Ukrainian, Reuters, Thomson
Locations:
MOSCOW, Ukraine, Russia, United States, Europe, Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Moscow, Soviet