Russia said it successfully tested a 36-ton nuclear missile on Wednesday and that it will conduct more tests in the coming months.
Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said the Bulava intercontinental missile was launched from a Borei-class submarine in the White Sea and struck its target in Kamchatka in Russia's far east, Radio Free Europe reported.
Bulava missiles can travel up to 8,000 miles and hold up to 10 nuclear warheads, Reuters reported.
"In October and November of this year, the naval fleet will carry out two more launches with two rocket cruisers equipped with ballistic missiles," Naval Commander-in-Chief Admiral Viktor Chirkov said according to Interfax.
The launch comes as Russia seeks to step up its military capabilities and drills, which occurred more frequently ever since the start of the Ukrainian crisis in April.
But Russia has seen many setbacks with kicking its missile program off the ground. Eight out of the last 20 Bulava missile tests failed, including one in September 2013, according to Radio Free Europe.
As Western leaders continue to slam Russia for its perceived involvement in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin is making moves to expand the defense industry. Putin said it was imperative for Russia to prepare a defense and that NATO was only involved in the conflict to "resuscitate itself," Reuters reported.
"We need a reliable and complete assessment of the potential threats to Russia's military security," Putin said Wednesday, moments before the Bulava missile test. "For each of these threats a sufficient, adequate response should be found."
The president also vowed to find a way around the sanctions imposed by the U.S. and European Union that blocked defense industry imports.
Bulava missiles can be up to 100 times more powerful than the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in 1945, according to Reuters.
