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Russia, RS-24 Yars ballistic missile test fails: launch did not take place

Planned from the Sverdlovsk region overnight, the launch was cancelled for unknown reasons. Kiev: it was a demonstration move before the phone call between Putin and Trump

The planned ‘training and combat’ launch of the Russian RS-24 Yars intercontinental ballistic missile did not take place. This was reported by the Ukrainian military consultancy Defense Express, citing Kiev intelligence sources (Gur). The test, which was supposed to take place last night from the Russian region of Sverdlovsk, near the settlement of Svobodny – home to the 433rd regiment of the 42nd division of the 31st army of the Russian Strategic Missile Forces – was suddenly cancelled.

According to Ukrainian analysts, ‘something went wrong’, but the reason for the failed launch remains unknown. The episode adds to a series of previous failures by Moscow in testing its ballistic missiles: in 2023, the RS-24 Yars failed twice in a row to achieve its planned trajectory, while in September 2024, an RS-28 Sarmat exploded on launch at the Plesetsk cosmodrome.

The missile planned for today’s test, reports the Gur, would have been equipped with a training warhead and would have had a demonstrative purpose: the aim, according to Kiev, was to intimidate Ukraine, EU and NATO countries. Moreover, the launch was to take place a few hours before the phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

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