a new missile casts doubt on the future of the conflict in Ukraine

It is a show of force addressed to the international community. On Wednesday April 20, 2022, the Russian army announced the first test firing of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, a new generation weapon with very long range. “Some say that they are hypersonic missiles, it is necessary to check indeed if it is about that but Russia can go beyond the subsonic speeds which we already know“, explains Emmanuel Dupuy, president of the Institute Prospective and Security in Europe (IPSE).

A potential technical feat which also allows Russia to restore its military image at a time when the invasion of Ukraine is not unanimous in the country. “Above all, it allows you to show a sanitized army, a hyper-technological army, which is ahead of the others.“, nuances the expert. “The Russians see that Russia is modernizing its armaments and that it is able to defend itself“, emphasizes Emmanuel Dupuy.