M-45 vs 9K720 Iskander

The EADS M45 and Votkinsk 9K720 Iskander operate at opposite ends of the ballistic missile spectrum. The M45 functioned exclusively as a strategic submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) for France’s Force océanique stratégique, retiring in 2016. The Iskander, a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) introduced in 2006, serves as Russia’s primary theater-level strike asset and remains in active production.

Development and Design

France derived the M45 from the preceding M4 to bridge the gap before the M51’s arrival, abandoning a land-based ICBM variant to focus entirely on naval deployment aboard Triomphant-class SSBNs. Russia initiated the Iskander program in 1988 to replace the OTR-23 Oka, constrained by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty to a 500 km range. Votkinsk designed the system for high mobility on a transporter erector launcher (TEL), prioritizing pre-launch survivability over fixed-silo infrastructure.

Performance and Capabilities

The M45 was a three-stage solid-fuel system capable of delivering six 110-kiloton TN-75 Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicles (MIRVs) over 6,000 km, achieving an exoatmospheric terminal velocity of Mach 15.1. The single-stage Iskander trades range for theater utility, restricted to 500 km but supporting a diverse 710 kg payload. Warhead options include:

• High-explosive fragmentation
• Cluster munitions
• Earth-penetrating bunker busters
• Thermonuclear devices (5-50 kt)

Rather than flying a standard parabolic arc, the Iskander maintains a quasi-ballistic trajectory at 50,000 meters, executing terminal evasive maneuvers.

Guidance and Technology

EADS equipped the M45 with a purely inertial guidance system linked to computerized payload control, sufficient for fixed counter-value targets but lacking terminal updates. The Iskander utilizes a layered guidance suite: inertial navigation updated by GLONASS/GPS, terminating with an electro-optical seeker for scene-matching area correlation. This permits retargeting in flight and striking moving targets. Furthermore, the Iskander integrates 9B899 penetration aids—deploying specialized decoys to spoof radar and infrared interceptors, a mechanism documented in Ukraine.

Deployment and Combat Record

As a nuclear deterrent, the M45 never saw combat. France built 192 units, utilizing a fraction for test launches, such as the 2004 firing from the submarine Vigilant. Conversely, the Iskander has an active combat record. Russia debuted the system during the 2008 Georgian War and utilized it in Syria. Armenia fired export-variant Iskanders during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War, though open-source damage assessments indicated high failure rates. In the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, Russia has launched hundreds of Iskander-M missiles to strike air defense nodes and airfields, forcing high consumption rates of Western-supplied Patriot interceptors.

Conclusion

The M45 held the absolute edge in strategic survivability; its deployment on SSBNs rendered pre-emptive destruction nearly impossible, while its MIRV payload guaranteed massive retaliatory yield against fixed targets. However, the Iskander possesses the definitive advantage in theater warfare. Its modular conventional payload, precision electro-optical guidance, and depressed-trajectory evasion capabilities make it an actively utilized tool for dismantling operational-level infrastructure. The Iskander solves immediate tactical problems and secures export contracts, whereas the M45 functioned strictly as an existential insurance policy.