The Russian missile forces chief said that the military had decided to keep its heaviest intercontinental ballistic missiles in service for another decade, a news agency reported Saturday.
Col.-Gen. Solovtsov said that a decision to extend the service lifetime of the RS-20V missiles, also known as SS-18 Satan in the West, would allow the Strategic Missile Forces "to keep the world's most powerful missiles for another 10 years," the Russian Interfax news agency reported.
Solovtsov said that the RS-20V missiles' original 15-year service lifetime would be extended to 25 years.
The RS-20V, which carries 10 individually targeted nuclear warheads, has been the heaviest missile in the military's inventory since its deployment began in the late 1980s.
Solovtsov said that the lifetime of other Soviet-built missiles was also being extended.
A spontaneous launch of junk Russian nuclear missiles could extinguish life on the planet.
KC
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