Posted on 11/26/2008 4:18:59 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
MOSCOW: Russia on Wednesday successfully test-fired for the third time its new RS-24 intercontinental ballistic missile, designed to counter air defence systems like the controversial US missile shield.
The missile was fired from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in north Russia and hit targets on the Kamchatka Peninsula that juts into the Pacific Ocean 6,000 kilometres to the east, Russian news agencies reported.
"The targets that were set were reached. The tasks were fully carried out," the commander of Russia's strategic missile forces, Nikolai Solovtsov, was quoted as saying by Interfax.
"The deployment of the RS-24 missiles, which have a detachable warhead, strengthens the military options of the Russian missile forces in overcoming missile defence systems."
Military spokesman Alexei Zolotukhin told Interfax that "the missile... was launched from a mobile launcher. This is the third test-firing of the RS-24 in the last two years."
Russia in May 2007 first test-fired the RS-24, which the military has said is designed to overcome air-defence systems such as the controversial US missile shield planned for deployment in eastern Europe.
The second test, which was also successful, was in December 2007. Experts and Russian news agencies have said the missile is capable of carrying three nuclear warheads.
The new test comes after Moscow has repeatedly expressed its fury over US plans to place a missile defence radar system in the Czech Republic and linked interceptor missiles in Poland.
Both President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin have urged Barack Obama to drop the plans when he takes over the White House in January but the US president-elect has yet to reveal his intentions.
This Country badly needs a mobile ICBM.
... is an answer for the talks on inviting Georgia and Ukraine into the NATO, recent acceptance of the Eastern European countries, US bases in Kyrgyzstan, ABM sites in Poland & Czechia (too early is better than too late).
Putin tested with Georgia and found the Bush-Gates-Rice team full of sound and fury signifying nothing.He found Hussein (who will not be funding any "unproven missile defense systems") responding with moral equivalence and a Chamberlinian slavering for talk-talk-talk.
Eurasia and Eastasia embrace ever more twiney-viney with arms deals as far as the eye can see--
--Taiwan, Ukraine, it was good to know ye.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.