Russian warships heading to the Caribbean

Various news sources are reporting that Russia is sending warships to the Caribbean for a military exercise in the coming weeks. The AP news agency reports that the U.S. had been tracking Russian warships and aircraft in this show of force by the Russians as tensions rise over Western military support for Ukraine, U.S. officials said.

CNN reports that the group of naval ships, including a nuclear-powered submarine, will visit Cuba next week as part of “historically friendly relations” Cuba’s government announced on Thursday.

In their statement, the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces stated that the Russian frigate Gorshkov, the nuclear powered submarine Kazan, the fleet oil tanker Pashin and the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker would be visiting Havana between 12 and 17 June.

Cuba stated that none of the ships carried nuclear weapons and said the stopover does not pose a threat to the region.

Russia has sent its ships to the Caribbean in the past, however officials believe this exercise is part of a broader Russian response to the U.S. support for Ukraine, and is also an effort by Putin to show his navy is still capable of global power projection after losing several ships to Ukrainian strikes.

Russia did not notify the U.S. of the pending exercise, but the ships’ movements have been tracked by the U.S. Navy, AP reports.

Officials believe the Russian ships will remain in the region through the summer and will likely conduct similar, follow-up exercises in the Caribbean after this one concludes.