Russian nuclear submarine and navy ships travel to Cuba

A Russian naval flotilla complete with a nuclear-powered submarine arrived in Cuba on Wednesday, according to Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The fleet ran mission exercises with high-precision missiles while crossing the Atlantic Ocean earlier this week, according to a translation of a social media post by Russia’s Defense Ministry.  Pentagon officials Wednesday afternoon said U.S. forces were monitoring the situation but called it a routine naval visit. The deployment comes amid tensions with the United States over Russia’s 2022 invasion and continuing war with Ukraine.

What is Russia doing in Cuba? The visit marks a continuation of friendly relations between the countries, Cuba’s Foreign Ministry said. Russian sailors will visit culturally and historically significant sites before leaving on Monday, the ministry added.

What did Russia do for drills? The guided-missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov and the nuclear submarine Kazan practiced long-range high-precision missile drills in the Atlantic, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday. Crews practiced hitting targets nearly 400 miles away, the defense ministry said. Another frigate in the fleet days earlier practiced repelling simulated air attacks, using naval artillery and anti-aircraft missile artillery systems.

How has the United States responded? Russia will conduct heightened naval and air activity near the United States, Secretary Defense Lloyd Austin’s office said in a statement to the U.S. Naval Institute. This activity is expected to peak this fall with global Russian naval exercises, the statement added. Russia’s deployments are part of routine naval activity and pose no direct threat to the United States, the office said.

Dig deeper: Listen to Paul Butler’s report on The World and Everything in It marking the 60th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis.