MOSCOW, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russia's missile and artillery forces will be fully equipped with the Iskander-M missile systems by 2020, commander of the forces Lt. Gen. Mikhail Matveyevsky said Friday.

The rearmament with the systems has already been completed in three out of Russia's four major military districts in the central, southern and eastern areas in the country, the commander said.

The Iskander-M, also known as SS-26 Stone, is a highly mobile ballistic missile system able to hit targets at a range of up to 500 km with several conventional warhead options weighing between 480 to 700 kg, and it is also capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.

The system is designed to engage moving and stationary targets such as critical infrastructure facilities, missile and long range artillery systems, air and anti-missile defense weapons, command and communication posts.

The Iskander-M is set to replace the previous generation Tochka-U (NATO name SS-21 Scarab B) tactical ballistic missiles.