In the last hours, the United States government deployed several warships and an underwater reconnaissance plane to track the course of the Russian flotilla that must arrive in Cuba this Wednesday.
The US deployment includes two destroyers: the USS Truxtun and the USS Donald Cook, as well as a Coast Guard cutter, the Stone; and a Boeing P-8 maritime patrol aircraft.
Maritime and air tracking data reported by the American magazine Newsweekreveal that in addition to the American ships, the Royal Canadian Navy frigate Villa de Quebec is also in the area.
Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) analysts On June 11, they published updates that also showed that, above the displacement of the North American destroyers, the coast guard and the Canadian frigate, there would be at least one P-8A Poseidon aircraft from the Navy and a Canadian CP-140 Aurora, which appeared to be carrying out surveillance duties.
Jesús Daniel Romero, retired lieutenant commander of the United States Navy Intelligence, believes that, despite what the Biden government says – which has downplayed the importance of the Russian visit to Cuba – Yes, the Russian deployment just 90 miles from the North American coast is worrying.
Romero believes that the presence of this Russian naval deployment in the Caribbean should not be taken lightly.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) of Cuba announced last week the arrival to Havana, on an “official visit” of several ships of the Russian Navyincluding a nuclear-powered submarine.
“Between June 12 and 17, 2024, an official visit will be made to the port of Havana by a naval detachment of the Russian Federation, composed of four ships: The frigate ‘Gorshkov’, the nuclear-powered submarine ‘Kazan’ , the fleet oil tanker ‘Pashin’ and the rescue tug ‘Nikolai Chiker’”, MINREX announced last Thursday in a statement.
The official note added that the visit is in line with “the historical friendly relations between Cuba and the Russian Federation,” and that “it strictly adheres to the international regulations to which Cuba is a State party.”
The MINREX specified that None of the ships are carrying nuclear weapons and that their stopover in the country does not represent a threat to the region.
Subsequently The US government said it was aware of Russian combat vesselswhich are scheduled to arrive in Cuba and the Caribbean for a military exercise.
The same source said that this summer Russia will carry out intense naval and air activity in the Caribbean, near the United States, and that the actions will culminate in a global Russian naval exercise in the fall. Nevertheless, The Biden administration said they did not view the deployment with alarm, as Russia has sent ships to the Western Hemisphere annually from 2013 to 2020.
They specify that “Russia’s deployments are part of routine naval activity,” and of no concern to the US government “as they do not pose a direct threat to the United States.”
Cuban-American senator Marco Rubio, for his part, asked President Joe Biden not to sit idly byand recalled that there has not been a Russian submarine with nuclear-capable missiles operating in the Caribbean for more than 30 years.
