Kremlin propagandists have issued a chilling threat to drop an atom bomb on Downing Street as Vladimir Putin successfully tested the world’s largest nuclear missile.
Moscow launched the Sarmat rocket - commonly referred to as Satan-2 - in an attempt to flex its muscles against the West.
Weighing 208 tonnes and standing as high as a 14-storey building, the intercontinental missile was fired from a silo and reached speeds of up to 15,880mph.
Strategic Missile Forces commander Sergei Karakayev confirmed to Mr Putin that the test had succeeded following weeks of anticipation.
Mr Putin, appearing visibly pleased, described the weapon as "the most powerful missile system in the world" and insisted that Western defences would be powerless to intercept it.
He said: "The total yield of the delivered warhead is more than four times greater than that of any existing, most powerful Western equivalent.
"Most importantly, the missile can travel not only on a ballistic trajectory, but also on a suborbital one.
"Thirdly, this allows for a range of over 35,000 kilometres [21,750 miles] while simultaneously doubling its missile defence performance.
The successful test saw the intercontinental missile fired from a silo and reach speeds of up to 15,880mph
|RUSSIAN MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
"And finally, it has the ability to penetrate all existing and prospective missile defence systems."
The Russian leader confirmed the mammoth weapon would be deployed "on combat duty" later this year.
Russian state media then simulated images depicting the potential devastation the missile could cause as a stark warning to Western countries and their partners.
One disturbing graphic depicted Downing Street being obliterated as the weapon struck central London.
It marks only the second confirmed successful test of the nuclear missile despite its fearsome reputation - with the last coming in April 2022.
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Mr Putin, appearing visibly pleased, described the weapon as 'the most powerful missile system in the world'
| REUTERSMultiple tests conducted since then have resulted in failure.
A hypersonic missile detonated on its launch platform at the Plesetsk cosmodrome in September 2024 - an accident believed to have left a 200-foot-wide crater in its wake.
A further test in November 2025 ended catastrophically when the rocket fell shortly after launch, causing an enormous explosion.
Mr Putin reportedly axed two heads of Russia's space agency from their positions after they claimed the Satan-2 was deployment-ready, amid growing frustration over the programme's setbacks.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow was receptive to American efforts to mediate an end to the war
| GETTYAlexander Gavrilov, the 55-year-old director of the defence facility that produces the missile, was taken into custody last month.
According to Russian state media, he is currently detained in Siberia facing charges of embezzlement.
The missile test coincides with the Kremlin's declaration on Tuesday that ongoing peace talks indicate the Ukraine conflict is "coming to an end".
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow was receptive to American efforts to mediate an end to the war.
Mr Putin indicated he would meet with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a neutral nation once an agreement had been finalised.
He said: "A meeting in a third country is also possible, but only once final agreements have been reached on a peace treaty for a longterm historical perspective, to take part in this event and sign (treaty), but it must be a final step."
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