Initial reports said a missile fell apart moments after its launch from a submarine in the Barents Sea -- the same location where the Kursk nuclear submarine sank in August 2000 to claimed the lives of 118 seamen.

But the state RIA Novosti and private Interfax news agencies later quoted navy sources as saying that missiles were never actually launched by the two ICBM tests but the exercise was scrapped through an automatic shutdown relayed to them by satellite.

The Northern Fleet command later denied there had been any "unforseen incident" but did not mention any ICBM launches that had been planned for the day.

The reported mishap -- if confirmed -- threatens to embarrass Putin less than a month before a March 14 presidential election that he is overwhelmingly expected to win.

The incident's political sensitivity became apparent Tuesday when Putin's mission to the Barents Sea -- top news on all networks before the ICBM tests -- was later buried at the end of the program by government-linked NTV television, which mentioned the reported launch failure.

Putin was shown wearing navy gear Monday evening as he boarded the Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine and chatted amicably with the crew.

He inspected the ship and dined with the sailors in televised footage certain to bolster his tough-guy image among voters ahead of the presidential vote.

Putin's approval rating is reported at up to 80 percent -- a figure similar to that he brandished in 2000 when his drive to raise Russia's self-esteem through strong nationalist rhetoric helped him succeed Boris Yeltsin.

The Kremlin press service said he spent the night on board the submarine with the seamen and was expected to stay there until Tuesday evening.

Russian military officials have repeatedly said on the eve of the war games that they were a regular test of the country's military readiness and not aimed as a show of force against the West.

News reports said they include six submarines carrying nuclear weapons. Tu-95 strategic bombers test fired cruise missile Tuesday over the Kola Peninsula on the northwestern edge of Russia near the Finnish border.

ITAR-TASS reported that the games -- which were expected to last several weeks -- would feature some 5,000 servicemen.

The mishap apparently affected an RSM-53 missile (NATO specification which was first developed by the Soviet Union in 1979.

Military analysts said test launches of ICBMS are usually conducted by Russia on its oldest models to see whether they were still good for exploitation.

Russia has been forced to rely heavily on its Soviet-era arsenal because of severe cash constraints. The military is believed to be producing only a handful of modern missile each year.

"The nuclear forces are armed with very old ICBMs: Some have been in service in underground silos for over 27 years," independent military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer wrote in The Moscow Times.

"The number of ICBM replacements is inadequate. Each year the ICBM inventory is getting older and older. The life span of most Russian ICBMs, as guaranteed by their producers, has long expired," the analyst said.

WAR.WIRE