Russian warships en route to the Caribbean for drills, as tension mounts between US-Russia over Ukraine

Published on: 06 Jun 2024 at 10:40 AM

Published by: factnews

The U.S. is tracking Russian warships and aircraft that may soon arrive in the Caribbean for a military exercise in the coming weeks, in a Russian show of force as tensions rise over Western military support for Ukraine, U.S. officials said Wednesday.

The ships also are expected possibly to make port calls in Venezuela and Cuba, as Russia establishes a Western Hemisphere military presence that the senior Biden administration officials said was notable but not concerning. The exercise, which will be monitored by the U.S. military, will involve a “handful” of Russian ships and support vessels, the two officials said.
In a Russian show of force as tensions over Western military support for Ukraine rise, the U.S. has been tracking Russian warships and aircraft that are expected to arrive in the Caribbean for a military exercise in the coming weeks, according to U.S. officials on Wednesday.

Senior Biden administration officials stated that while Russia’s military presence in the Western Hemisphere is noteworthy, it is not concerning. The ships may also make port calls in Venezuela and Cuba. According to the two officials, there will be a “handful” of Russian ships and support vessels participating in the exercise, which will be observed by US military personnel.

Russia has previously dispatched ships to the Caribbean. But this drill is happening at the same time that Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to respond to President Joe Biden’s decision to let Ukraine use weapons supplied by the United States to launch strikes inside Russia to defend Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city, by taking “asymmetrical steps” elsewhere in the world.

Speaking to reporters under the condition of anonymity, the officials revealed information that had not been made public. They stated that while the exercise is “certainly” a part of a larger Russian response to the United States’ support for Ukraine, it is also an attempt by Putin to demonstrate his navy’s continued ability to project power globally in the wake of losing multiple ships to Ukrainian strikes.

In March, military officials from Ukraine claimed that during the previous two years of conflict, Russian naval losses in the Black Sea amounted to one-third.

According to the officials, the U.S. Navy has been monitoring the ships’ movements despite Russia’s lack of notification of the impending exercise.