5 Countries That Own Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, Who Are They?

JAKARTA – A number of countries that own intercontinental ballistic missiles are interesting to know. Some of them are in Asia.

In its development, ballistic missiles are classified based on the maximum distance they can travel. In general, there are four classifications.

One of them is an intercontinental ballistic missile or ICBM. Usually this type of missile has a range of more than 5,500 km.

Currently, there are a number of countries in the world that are known to be ICBM owners. Here are five of them.

Countries That Have Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles

1. Russia

As one of the world’s great powers, the Russian military is equipped with intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). Not just one type, Moscow even has many different variants.

One of them is the RS-28 Sarmat which has the NATO name “Satan”. Designed as a successor to the aging Russian SS-18, this missile began to be worked on around the 2000s.

The RS-28 Sarmat is a liquid-fueled missile that is claimed to have a range of 18,000 km with a launch weight of 208.1 metric tons. Known as the Heavy ICBM, the Sarmat can carry a payload of up to 10 tons with a variety of warhead options.

In addition, Russia still has several other ICBMs in service. Here are some of them:

-R-36: Range 10,200 – 16,000 km (active)
-RS-24 Yars: Range 10,500 km (active)
-Topol: Range 11.000+ km (active)
-Topol-M: Range 11,000 km (active)
-UR-100: Range 10,000 km (active)

2. United States

Russia’s enemy, the United States, also has intercontinental ballistic missiles. This is actually not surprising considering Washington’s military power which is also known to be capable and complete.

One example is the LGM-30G Minuteman III. This intercontinental ballistic missile is the United States’ last land-based ICBM still in service after the LGM-118 missile was phased out in 2005.

In its specifications, the Minuteman III has a maximum range of 13,000 kilometers. In addition, they can carry three re-entry vehicles (RVs) that can each target a different target within the overall range.

3. China

Moving on to Asia, there is China. The Bamboo Curtain country has a number of intercontinental ballistic missiles that support its military power.