Russia's state space agency will build approximately 46 Sarmat strategic warfare systems, according to a statement made by Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin.

"We will have 46 Sarmat strategic combat systems in total," Rogozin told the Solovyov Live show on YouTube.

The Russian Defense Ministry announced last Thursday that it successfully conducted the first test launch of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile from a silo launcher at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.

Russia's Ministry of Defense explained that this launch was the first in the program of state trials while clarifying that flight tests of a promising heavy-class missile with a multiple reentry vehicle made it possible to assess the correctness of the schematic design and technical solutions laid down during the creation of the Sarmat missile system. 

"After the completion of the trials program, the Sarmat missile system will go into service with the Strategic Missile Forces. In the Uzhur missile formation in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, work is underway to prepare the head missile regiment for re-equipment with the new missile system," the statement further read. 

Sarmat is a heavy missile system with an intercontinental liquid-propellant ballistic missile weighing over 200 tons that is capable of hitting targets at long ranges and using various flight trajectories. This enables it to avoid all existing and prospective anti-missile defense systems.