A topRussiandiplomat has sentNATOa chilling warning just days afterVladimir Putinconfirmed plans to deploy the "most powerful missile in the world". Barely a week after the Russian leader, 73, boasted about the successful test launch of the Sarmat strategic weapon - known asSatan II- his Deputy Foreign Minister has warned that the likelihood of a 'head-on clash' with NATO is rising.

Sergei Ryabkov said talk of “the looming threat of a high-intensity war” is spreading uncontrollably across European capitals, adding that this “escalatory narrative” is needlessly provokingPutinand could lead to "potentially catastrophic consequences". "As a result of this escalation of tensions, including blatantly provocative moves in the nuclear sphere, strategic risks are increasing, as is the danger of a head-on clash betweenNATOand our country, with potentially catastrophic consequences as a result," Ryabkov, 65, told theTASSstate news agency.

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The senior diplomat said thatRussiahas "unequivocally expressed its strong criticism" of some European countries running war games in recent weeks, such steps, he said, "are being accompanied by hostile anti-Russian rhetoric and are an element of the broader process ofEurope’saccelerated militarisation, directly targeting this country".

Ryabkov added that there are currently no conditions for a meaningful strategic dialogue, including onarms control. He said that progress is impossible unless the West genuinely considers Russia’s core interests and resolves key security disputes, noting that numerous obstacles have long stood in the way.

This comes just days after the Russian President confirmed a successful test of Russia's terrifyingintercontinental ballistic missile, which he said would be ready for "combat duty" by the end of the year.

Putin boasted that the Satan II - which is said to weigh around 208 tonnes and is as tall as a 14-storey tower block - has the ability to penetrate all existing ​and future anti-missile defence systems.

"The total yield of the deliveredwarheadis more than four times greater than that of any existing, most powerful Western equivalent," Putin said. "Most importantly, the missile can travel not only on a ballistic trajectory, but also on a suborbital one.

"Thirdly, this allows for a range of over 35,000 kilometres [21,700 miles] while simultaneously doubling its missile defence performance."

Source: Daily Express :: World Feed