The Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) of Cuba announced that Next week a group of ships from the Navy of the Federation of Cuba will arrive in Havana. Russia, accompanied by a nuclear submarine. This, just hours after the US reported the imminent deployment of Moscow’s ships and combat vessels in the Caribbean.
According to the official note, the group is made up of the frigate Admiral Gorshkov and the nuclear-powered submarine Kazanplus the fleet oil tanker Pashin and the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker.
The note does not mention that Admiral Gorshkov is the lead ship of the latest generation of frigates of the Russian Navy, which in January 2023 carried out a Zircon hypersonic missile launch exercise in the Atlantic using a computer simulation. It can also carry Kalibr missiles. The Zircon has a range of 1,000 kilometers and achieves a speed of more than 11,000 kilometers per hour, according to the Kremlin.
While, Kazan submarine has the capacity to fire cruise missiles.
According to MINFAR, this detachment “between June 12 and 17, 2024 (…) will carry out an official visit to the port of Havana”, which “corresponds with the historical friendly relations between Cuba and the Federation of Russia and strictly adheres to the international regulations of which Cuba is a State Party”.
He also ensures that “none of the ships carry nuclear weapons, so their stopover in our country does not represent a threat to the region.”
The MINFAR justifies the visit by pointing out that this is “a historical practice of the revolutionary Government with nations (SIC) that maintain relations of friendship and collaboration. During their stay, the Russian sailors will carry out a program of activities that includes courtesy visits to the head of the “Revolutionary Navy and the governor of Havana will also visit places of historical and cultural interest.”
Upon arriving in Havana, 21 salutes will be fired from one of the Russian ships “as a salute to the Nation, which will be reciprocated by an artillery battery of the Revolutionary Armed Forces from the San Carlos de La Cabaña Fortress,” the note concludes. .
The announcement does not mention the participation of aircraft in the deploymentdespite the fact that the US reported on Wednesday that it had tracked Russian vessels and combat aircraft that would arrive in the Caribbean in the coming weeks for a military exercise. MINFAR also does not refer to military maneuvers.
Two U.S. officials said on condition of anonymity that the drills would be a show of force by Russia at a time of heightened tensions over Western military support for Ukraine.
They added that the vessels are expected to make possible stops in ports in Venezuela and Cuba, while Russia establishes a military presence in the Western Hemisphere, which they described as “drawing attention, but not worrying.”
They also indicated that the exercise is “without a doubt” part of a broader Russian response to US support for Ukraine, but it is also an attempt by Putin to demonstrate that his Navy is still capable of projecting global powerafter losing important units due to accurate Ukrainian attacks.
Ukrainian military officials said in March that Russia had lost a third of its Black Sea fleet to attacks during the last two years of war.
Russia did not notify the United States about the upcoming maneuvers, but the US Navy has been tracking the movements of these vessels, the officials said. Nor has the Russian press mentioned the now announced deployment.
Vladimir Putin warned on Wednesday that Russia could deliver long-range missiles to third countrieswho would use these weapons to attack “strategic points” in the territory of Western allies that supply weapons to Ukraine, in what they called a “symmetrical” response to Western arms deliveries to kyiv.
In an appearance before foreign media from St. Petersburg, the Kremlin leader, who did not mention which countries he was referring to, said that the West’s permission for kyiv to use weapons delivered for the defense of its territory against Russian soil constitutes a “step very dangerous”, especially if those who send them also “control” their use.
US officials said they expect the Russian ships to remain in the region throughout the summer and will likely conduct similar follow-up exercises in the Caribbean after they conclude their maneuvers.
If it occurs, They would be the first simultaneous air and maritime maneuvers that Russia has carried out in the Caribbean since 2019.
In June of that year, Admiral Gorshkov was in Havana accompanied by the support ship Elbrus and the rescue tug Nikolay Chiker. This occurred during a time of tensions between Washington and Moscow. On that occasion, Vladimir Putin threatened to deploy missiles closer to the United States if the same was done in countries close to Russia.
In fact, last Tuesday the National Assembly (Parliament) of Nicaragua authorizedas he has done regularly since the last decade, the entry into that country of troops, ships and planes of the Russian Armed Forces between June 1 and December 31, 2024, as well as those of Cuba, the United States and Venezuela.
The authorization aims to allow “exchange and humanitarian assistance for mutual benefit, in case of emergency situations”, during the second half of 2024, specified the presidential decree sent to Parliament by Daniel Ortega and cited by EFE.
The Russian military presence in Nicaragua would be to participate in “training and exchange exercises in humanitarian aid operations.”search, rescue and rescue missions in emergency situations or natural disasters” with the Humanitarian and Rescue Unit, as well as with the ground forces, Air Force and Naval Force of the Nicaraguan Army.
Exchanges of experiences, training, and operations against illicit activities will also be carried out in maritime spaces in the Caribbean Sea and jurisdictional waters in the Pacific Ocean of Nicaragua with the Nicaraguan Naval Force, adds the approved norm.
Besides, Ortega facilitated the entry of Russian troops into Nicaragua to participate with members of the Special Operations Commandthe elite force of the Nicaraguan Army, “in exchange of experiences and training exercise in humanitarian aid operations.”
