Russian warships arrive in Cuban waters for a military exercise

2024-06-12 22:50:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Russian warships arrive in Cuban waters for a military exercise

Illustrative photo

A fleet of Russian warships arrived in Cuban waters on Wednesday ahead of planned military exercises in the Caribbean, a move analysts see as a show of force as tensions continue to rise between Moscow and the West over the conflict in Ukraine.

Three warships entered Havana Bay in company with several small vessels, which guided them through the narrow channel of the bay.

A nuclear-powered submarine is expected to arrive after them.

The US military expects the drills to include a small number of Russian warships, which may also make a stop in Venezuela.

Russia is a longtime ally of Venezuela and Cuba, and its warships and aircraft have occasionally visited the Caribbean region. But the mission comes less than two weeks after President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use US weapons to strike targets inside Russia in an effort to defend Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city. After the decision, President Vladimir Putin suggested that his military could respond "asymmetrically" in another area of ??the world.

"Above all, the warships are a reminder to Washington that it's annoying when an adversary intervenes close to your country," said Benjamin Gedan, a Latin America expert at the Wilson Center in Washington, referring to the West's involvement in Russia's war in Ukraine. . "It also reminds Russia's friends in the region, including America's adversaries like Cuba and Venezuela, that Moscow is on their side."

Although the fleet includes one nuclear-powered submarine, a senior US administration official said US intelligence has determined the ships are not equipped with nuclear weapons. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Russia's military deployments "do not pose a direct threat to the United States."

US officials last week said Russian warships were expected to remain in the region throughout the summer.

Russian warships have occasionally docked in Havana since 2008, when a group of Russian warships entered Cuban waters, a move that state media said at the time was the first Russian visit of its kind in almost two decades. In 2015, a reconnaissance and communications ship arrived unannounced in Havana, a day before talks between U.S. and Cuban officials on restoring diplomatic relations began.

A State Department spokesman told the Associated Press news agency that the Russian port visits to Cuba are "routine naval visits," while acknowledging that its military exercises "have increased due to United States support for Ukraine and training activity in support of our NATO allies".

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov hosted his Cuban counterpart, Bruno Rodríguez, for talks in Moscow. Speaking to reporters after the talks, Mr Lavrov thanked the Cuban authorities for their attitude towards Ukraine.

"From the very beginning, Havana gave an absolutely accurate and true assessment of what was being prepared in Ukraine by the West for many years," Minister Lavrov said.

Russian military doctrine values ??Latin America and the Caribbean as important regions, seeing those spheres under Washington's influence, acting as a counterweight to the United States' activities in Europe, said Ryan Berg, an expert on Central and South America at the Center for the Study Strategic and International in Washington.

"While this is likely to be little more than a provocation from Moscow, it sends a message about Russia's ability to project power in the Western Hemisphere, with the help of its allies, and will certainly keep the US military on alert. high, while they are close," said analyst Berg.

The timing of this year's mission may serve Russia's goals, but it is also raising the question of whether the Venezuelan government could use the occasion to boost support for a third term for President Nicolás Maduro in the July 28 election.

Venezuela's main opposition coalition is challenging the ruling party's decades-long grip. That challenge and the creation of a crisis with tensions simmering with Guyana are among the scenarios analysts believe President Maduro's government could use as justification to postpone or cancel the election.

"It is almost certain that Maduro will not risk losing power," said Evan Ellis, a professor of Latin America at the US Army War College.

"The clearest alternative, considering the recent movements of the Venezuelan army,. It is the fabrication of an international crisis that would justify the 'postponement' of elections in the country," says Professor Ellis.

"The presence of Russian warships in the vicinity would greatly increase the risk of escalation of a possible crisis, concocted by Mr. Maduro."

Venezuelans voted in a referendum in December in support of extending sovereignty to the Essequibo region, which comprises two-thirds of Guyana and is located near large offshore oil deposits. Venezuela says this territory was stolen when the border was changed more than a century ago.

Guyana is awaiting a ruling on Venezuela's claim from the International Court of Justice, but Mr. Maduro's government does not recognize the Court's authority.

The United States supports Guyana in this ongoing dispute and assisted it with surveillance flights late last year. Venezuela has threatened to invade this country.

Guyana's government last month authorized the US military to send two F-18 fighter jets to patrol the airspace over its capital to demonstrate close cooperation between the two countries.

Guyana's Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo said on June 6 that the Russian fleet does not pose "a direct threat" to his country.

"However, we are attentive and are closely following these political developments", said Mr. Jagdeo in a press conference./ VOA