2024-07-28 02:22:36
Russian warships from the Baltic Fleet docked today in the port of Havana, and the training ship “Smolny” was the first to enter the port, a TASS correspondent reported.
Salutes were fired from aboard the Smolny, and a return volley was heard from the Havana harbor fort. After the training ship, the tanker “Elnya” and the patrol ship “Neutrashimi” entered the port. The Russian ships will remain in Havana until Tuesday, TASS notes.
In a brief statement, the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces defined the visit of Russian warships to Cuba as routine, BTA writes.
This is the second visit of Russian warships to Cuba this year. At the beginning of June, a group of Russian warships from the Northern Fleet, led by the frigate “Admiral Gorshkov” and the nuclear submarine “Kazan”, docked in the port of Havana, which caused great interest on the part of local residents, TASS recalls.
The US State Department and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters.
The agency notes that Russia is showing muscle by sending warships to Cuba, which is located less than 100 miles from the state of Florida.
Tensions between Moscow and Washington have risen since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, and Russian military activity in the Atlantic, while routine, has expanded because of U.S. support for Ukraine, U.S. officials say.