Putin: More ICBMs For Russian Forces Next Year

Russian President Vladimir Putin (file photo)

Russian President Vladimir Putin says Russia's Strategic Rocket Forces will receive 22 new intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) for their arsenal next year.

Putin was addressing a conference in the southern city of Sochi on advancing the Rocket Forces and said the ground-based ICBMs due to be deployed in 2014 would be capable of "penetrating any missile-defense system both today and in the future."

Putin also noted two missile regiments had been armed with new mobile strategic systems earlier this year.

Rocket Forces General Sergei Karakayev said new missile systems would be deployed to divisions in Novosibirsk and Nizhny Tagil, north of Yekaterinburg, before the end of this year.

The meeting was the first in a series of meetings on defense issues that Putin will hold with military officials in coming days.

Based on reporting by ITAR-TASS and Interfax