Russia test fired a ballistic missile from a nuclear submarine in the Barents Sea on Friday, a spokesman for Russia's navy said.

The missile was launched from the Ryazan nuclear submarine in the Barents Sea and hit a designated area in the Kura testing ground on the Kamchatka Peninsula on Russia's Pacific coast.

"The ballistic missile was launched from the Ryazan nuclear submarine and the warhead reached the Kura firing range in Kamchatka at the planned time," said navy spokesman Igor Dyagalo. He declined to say what sort of missile had been fired. Russian missile tests have become regular occurrences by the armed forces in recent years.