The 9M723 is the ballistic missile fired by Russia's Iskander-M system, a road-mobile short-range strike weapon associated with conventional, cluster, and nuclear-capable payload options. Its combat record spans Russian use in Ukraine, Syria, and Georgia, plus disputed Armenian use around Shusha in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh fighting.
Russian forces have used 9M723-series Iskander-M ballistic missiles against Ukrainian targets; Bellingcat and OSMP documented 9M723/9M723K1 cluster-munition evidence in early 2022, RUSI later described modified Iskander-M attacks against Ukrainian air defenses, and Ukrinform relayed a June 2026 Ukrainian Air Force report of 33 Iskander-M ballistic missiles in one overnight attack.
Role detailsRussian officials said the Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile had been used and had proven effective in Syria, placing the missile with Russia's military support to the Syrian government side.
Role detailsPostwar reporting cited missile-fragment markings and impact locations around Shusha as evidence that Armenian forces fired Iskander-family ballistic missiles during the 2020 fighting, while the use claim remained politically disputed.
Investigations into the 12 August 2008 strike on Gori found that a Russian Iskander missile carrying cluster submunitions struck the city during the 2008 Russo-Georgian War.
Open sources distinguish the Russian-service 9M723 family from the reduced-range export Iskander-E ballistic missile.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| 9M720 / Iskander-E | Export ballistic missile | CSIS describes the export ballistic missile as a reduced-range Iskander-E/9M720 configuration with a 280 km range and 480 kg payload. Sources: 9K720 Iskander (SS-26) |
The 9M723 is the expendable ballistic missile within the wider Iskander family, while the 9K720 entry covers the launcher and support-vehicle complex.
| Launcher | Launcher type | Launch evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Road-mobile missile system | The 9K720 Iskander-M system fires 9M723-series ballistic missiles from a wheeled transporter-erector-launcher that carries two missiles. Sources: 9K720 Iskander (SS-26), The Iskander-M and Iskander-K: A Technical Profile |
Open sources separate the Iskander family into a launcher system, ballistic missiles, and cruise-missile configurations. The 9M723 designation here refers to the ballistic missile carried by Iskander-M launch vehicles.
| Element | Catalog meaning | Source-backed note |
|---|---|---|
| 9M723 | Ballistic missile | Russian-service short-range ballistic missile associated with Iskander-M and reported ranges up to about 500 km. |
| 9M723-1 | Updated missile | CSIS reports the updated missile was tested in 2010 and accepted into Russian service in 2012. |
| 9M723K1 | Cluster-payload designation | OSMP catalogs 9M723K1 Iskander observations in Ukraine, and Bellingcat documented 9M723 cluster-variant remnants in March 2022. |
| 9M720 / Iskander-E | Export missile | Export Iskander-E ballistic missiles are described with reduced range and payload compared with Russian-service Iskander-M missiles. |
| Launch system | Road-mobile launcher and support-vehicle system that fires the 9M723 ballistic missile and, in Iskander-K form, separate cruise missiles. |
CSIS traces Iskander development to late Soviet work that replaced earlier Oka-family missile capability.
Sources: 9K720 Iskander (SS-26)
Dutch and human-rights investigations attributed the deadly Gori strike during the 2008 Russo-Georgian War to a Russian Iskander missile carrying cluster submunitions.
Sources: ECHR: Georgia, Russia Violated Rights of Dutch Journalist Killed in 2008 War, Up in Flames
CSIS reports that Russia accepted the updated 9M723-1 missile into service after a 2010 test program.
Sources: 9K720 Iskander (SS-26)
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov said the Iskander-M had proven effective in Syria, according to CSIS Missile Threat reporting.
Sources: Russian MoD Confirms Use of Iskander-M SRBM in Syria
Postwar evidence around Shusha connected Iskander-family ballistic missiles to Armenian use claims in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh fighting.
Sources: Contrary to Previous Claims, Evidence Shows Iskander Missiles in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, Urban Warfare Project Case Study #15: Battle of Shusha
Bellingcat reported civilian-documented remnants from 9M723-series cluster munitions during the opening phase of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Sources: These Are The Cluster Munitions Documented By Ukrainian Civilians
RUSI reported that Russian Iskander-M missiles had been modified in ways that complicated Ukrainian interception efforts.
Sources: Iskander Improved: Russian Missile Tests Ukraine's Air Defence
Ukrinform, citing the Ukrainian Air Force, reported that Russia launched 33 Iskander-M ballistic missiles during a large overnight attack that began on 1 June 2026.
Sources: Ukraine downs 40 missiles, 602 drones during Russia's large-scale air assault
