One of the satellites of the Russian space-based early-warning system, Cosmos-2440, has most likely completed its operations. The geostationary satellite launched in June 2008 has been drifting off its station at 80 degrees East since February 2010, when it failed to perform an orbit correction. The satellite is currently at the point of about 75 degrees East. The drift does not appear to be a transfer to a different station - this kind of maneuvers are done differently.
With the loss of Cosmos-2440, Russia's space-based early-warning system is down to two satellites on highly-elliptical orbits - Cosmos-2430 (launched 23 October 2007, NORAD catalog number 32268) and Cosmos-2446 (HEO, 2 December 2008, 33447). These satellites appear to be functioning normally - they performed their regular orbit-correction maneuvers around 15 July 2010 and 18 August 2010 respectively.
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Why Russia is not inwesting in space system EW ?
Probably,because of Olympic Games in Sochi?By the way-may be new free democratic Russa needs no new EW satellites (terrorists have no ICBMs/SLBMs,"nuclear club" countries are friends of Russia etc)?
So how much coverage does Russia really have?
Not much. It can detect a missile launched from the U.S. territory during certain hours of a day. That's about it. But it's not really a problem these days.
so does this mean that America has a superiority over Russia in first strike?
Not necessarily. Even without the space segment, the early warning system provides reasonably adequate warning.
By the way Russian radars do provide warning in all directions, expecially after the big complex in Armavir has been completed, but radars do not "see" as far as Outer oceans. Their range is very great in absolute terms, but- counting minutes of flight time- a radar is able to detect a warhead when it is about 5-6 minutes far to its intended impact.
I do not know how expensive is building and deploying an IR-EW-geosinchronous satellite, but it would be, in my view, a justified espenditure
The real problem is NOT a warning against a real attack; in 1995 a radar picked up something similar to a Trident approaching Moscow region. There followed no nuclear counterattack because EW geostationary satellite did not show either "hot spots" or "hot plumes", so it was ruled out the disturbing idea it was a real Trident. Without operational EW satellites, Yeltsin wouldn't have been sure that was not a menace, and he could have decided to strike