Russia says it successfully test launched an intercontinental ballistic missile on Tuesday. This is believed to be the first ICBM test that Moscow has carried out, since it announced in February that it would suspend its participation in the nuclear arms control treaty with the United States.

On Wednesday, the Russian defense ministry announced that the Strategic Missile Forces had launched an ICBM from a test site in the southern Russian region of Astrakhan on the previous day.

The ministry said the missile's training warhead hit a mock target at a training ground in neighboring Kazakhstan.

The ministry added that the launch made it possible to confirm that the design and the technical solutions used to develop the new strategic missile systems are correct.

In February, Russia unilaterally declared that it would put the New START nuclear arms treaty on hold.

Relations between Russia and the US are tense, due to the situation in Ukraine, and Moscow has been trying to put pressure on Washington.

Russia announced in March that it is planning to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus. The two nations are allies.

Washington revealed in March that it had decided to stop providing Moscow with information on strategic nuclear weapons.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told reporters on Wednesday that his country had informed the US side about the ICBM test launch in advance.