Flight tests of Russia's new intercontinental ballistic missile Sarmat will begin later this year and should be completed in 2022, and the country's strategic missile forces should get the first batch in 2022 as well, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Friday.

"Flight tests [will begin] this year and should be completed in 2022. In 2022, the first batch should enter service with the strategic missile forces", Shoigu told reporters at the Krasnoyarsk Machine-Building Plant.

The Sarmat is expected to replace the Voevoda (РС-20В Satan), the heaviest strategic missile in the world. It will be capable of carrying up to 10 tonnes of payload for either up to 10 heavy or 15 light MIRV warheads.