Russia has successfully test fired the Sineva submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) from a Delta-IV Class submarine in the Barents Sea in the Arctic, Defence Ministry spokesman colonel Igor Konashenkov has said.

The missile was launched underwater from the strategic nuclear submarine, the Yekaterinburg, and successfully hit the designated target.

“The launch was designed to test the reliability of Russian marine strategic nuclear forces,” he added.

The RSM-54 Sineva (Nato codename SS-N-23 Skiff) is a third-generation liquid-propellant submarine-launched ballistic missile that can carry four to ten nuclear warheads.

The 15m-long missile, with a range of 11,000km, can be launched from a submarine from more than 50m beneath the water level.

The missile was also tested by the Russian Navy’s Northern Fleet from a K-117 Bryansk strategic nuclear submarine in the Barents Sea in 2010.