Russia has a large nuclear arsenal and is not shy about bragging about it. Russian officials are constantly threatening the world about the use of its latest intercontinental ballistic missiles. Such as the RS-24 Yars, which seems to be a bit of a favourite of the president of Russia Vladimir Putin.
The RS-24 Yars – one of Russia’s latest thermonuclear armed intercontinental ballistic missiles. Image credit: Vitaly V. Kuzmin via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Russia has recently tested the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile again, which gave the leadership of the country new confidence to threaten the world with a devastating nuclear Third World War. Vladimir Putin himself in his speech at the Federal Assembly on February 29 reminded that Russia has weapons capable of striking Western countries. This, of course, is a reaction to continuous military aid flowing into Ukraine.
Ivan Timochko, Chairman of the Council of Reservists of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, said that the Yars missile has some interesting features. For example, it uses solid fuel, which is not the most obvious choice for a new weapon.
Solid rocket fuel is cheaper and easier to use than the liquid one, Timochko noted. The rocket does not need to be fueled before launch if it is full of solid fuel. On the other hand, liquid fuel gives a missile more power, but it requires more advanced technology and is a bit more tricky to maintain and operate.
“In comparison, North Korea produces missiles that use solid fuel, while the US missiles use liquid fuel. China’s too,” said Ivan Timochko. He believes that Putin is threatening the world with a missile that is essentially based on older post-Soviet technology. In other words, according to Timochko, the old nature of the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile is indicated by the fact that it uses a simpler solid fuel system.
The RS-24 Yars officially entered service in 2011. The fact that Yars uses solid fuel is included in the missile’s official specifications, which also indicates that the third and fourth stages can also use liquid fuel. The Yars was first tested in 2007. It is also interesting that the Yars and the Topol-M differ very little. The Topol-M is designed to carry a single warhead, while Yars can launch as many as four independent warheads over a designated area.
Timochko claims that the Russians have about 15-20 Yars missiles. Meanwhile, Russia has more than 60 Topol-Ms in its arsenal. That is enough to destroy many of the world’s major cities. The Yars and the Topol-M have a range of about 11-12 thousand kilometres.
And it’s important to point out that just because the Yars is a pretty old-fashioned missile doesn’t mean it’s harmless and should not be taken seriously. In many ways, solid fuel systems are more reliable. Russians boast about it excessively, but even with its solid fuel system Yars could destroy the country with nuclear strikes no problem at all.
Written by Povilas M.