The Ukrainian Armed Forces Struck A Key Russian Facility Linked To "Satan" Missiles And An Alternative To Starlink
- 11.10.2026, 12:15
The Kremlin had high hopes for this center.
On the night of October 9, the Ukrainian Defense Forces launched a strike against the Center for the Elimination of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), located near the town of Syrovatykha in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the ICBM Disposal Center was involved in the production of explosives and rocket fuel components. Therefore, Defense Express has uncovered what makes this facility unique.
Analysts noted that the ICBM disposal center was launched in 1991 at Military Unit 32193, which had previously been known as the “Missile Neutralization and Dismantling Station” (SND). In particular, specialists from the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau were brought in to organize it.
“As the facility’s name clearly indicates, the ICBM Disposal Center, in the early stages of its operation in the 1990s, was engaged in the disposal of ‘surplus’ intercontinental ballistic missiles that were ‘inherited’ to Russia from the USSR under the START-1 and START-2 agreements on the reduction of strategic offensive arms,” the article added.
A total of 448 land-based R-36 and UR-100N UTTKh intercontinental ballistic missiles were dismantled at the facility. By comparison, as of 2024, Russia had 521 land- and sea-based intercontinental ballistic missiles at its disposal, the development of which required more than two decades of work by the Russian military-industrial complex.
At the same time, this arsenal included 34 R-36M missiles, better known as “Satan,” which may also be designated as RS-20 “Voevoda.”
“However, over time, the ICBM Decommissioning Center took on two other important functions—maintaining the technical condition of the existing arsenal of ‘Satan’ missiles as part of the “Zaryadye” program and the conversion of ICBMs of this type into conversion missiles under the “Dnepr” (“Dnepr”) program. From this, it was already clear that, despite its formal name, the “ICBM Decommissioning Center,” this facility plays one of the key roles in the Russian Federation’s strategic missile arsenal,” notes Defense Express.
Experts emphasized that the “Dnepr” conversion program in Russia was officially terminated in 2015, but subsequently, the ICBM Disposal Center was involved in the supply chain for liquid-fuel components for other types of formally “civilian” launch vehicles, which were launched from the Vostochny and Kourou spaceports.
“For the Russian Federation, launch vehicles are now of particular importance in the context of placing satellites into orbit as a sort of ‘alternative to Starlink,’ specifically as part of the ‘Bureau-1440,’ ‘Yamal,’ and ‘Start-1M’ projects. Rocket fuel is, of course, essential for the implementation of these projects. This also underscores the importance of the ICBM Disposal Center. Regardless of the extent of damage inflicted on this facility, the very fact of its destruction is significant. At the same time, it illustrates the breadth of the Ukrainian Defense Forces’ efforts to reduce Russia’s missile capabilities across all fronts,” the publication concluded.