Dozens of Havana residents gathered and watched Russian warships enter Cuba’s main port on Wednesday – in Moscow’s latest show of naval force amid heightened tensions with states -United.
The Caribbean nation is a neighbor of the United States, which at its closest point is about 150 kilometers (94 miles) away, but has had strained relations for decades.
Although this is not the first time Russian naval vessels have visited Cuba, this convoy appears to be the largest in several years. The fleet is expected to stay between June 12 and 17 and the public will be allowed to tour the ships.
Here’s what we know about why Russia is sending ships to Cuba now, how far back Russian-Cuban ties go, and why the two have grown closer over the past year:
Why are the warships in Havana?
The flotilla is part of a routine “friendly” visit between the navies of the two countries, Cuban officials said. The crew on board are expected to conduct military training exercises during their stay in the Caribbean.
But analysts say Moscow’s move is largely aimed at bolstering naval power in the United States’ backyard. The detachment comes after an escalation in tensions between Russia and the United States, following President Joe Biden’s decision in May to authorize Ukraine to attack Russian targets with American weapons.
Russian President Putin has promised retaliation not only against the United States, but also against other Western allies of Ukraine, who have also lifted restrictions on the use of their weapons against Moscow.
“This would mark their direct involvement in the war against the Russian Federation, and we reserve the right to act in the same way,” Putin said last week, adding that Moscow was ready to use nuclear weapons.
Benjamin Gedan, director of the Latin America program at the Washington-based Wilson Center think tank, told the Associated Press news agency that “the warships remind Washington that it is unpleasant when an adversary interferes in your neighbourhood). »
The naval display also aims to reassure Moscow’s Latin American allies – Cuba and Venezuela – of Moscow’s continued support against Washington, some experts said.
Like Russia and Cuba, economically ravaged Venezuela has unpleasant relations with the United States and is subject to American sanctions.
What ships has Russia deployed and how much of a threat do they pose?
The Russian fleet includes four vehicles in total.
- Admiral Gorshkov: is the lead ship of the convoy. The frigate, that is to say a warship light to steer and easy to maneuver, is one of the most modern models of the Russian Navy. It is capable of carrying out long-range missile attacks and anti-submarine warfare while being difficult to spot with radar due to the use of stealth technologies. The ship is equipped with hypersonic Zircon missiles, which Putin says can fly nine times faster than the speed of sound at a range of more than 1,000 km (over 620 miles). It also carries Kalibr and Oniks cruise missiles.
- Kazan: is a nuclear-powered submarine and houses a nuclear reactor. The vehicle would also be equipped with missiles from the Kalibr and Oniks families.
- Pashine – the fleet tanker, and a rescue tug – Nikolai Chiker – complete the convoy as support vehicles.
How did the United States react?
U.S. officials publicly downplay the deployment and say it is part of routine stops between Russia and Cuba.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Wednesday that such naval exercises were commonplace and that there was no indication that Moscow was transferring missiles to Havana.
Last July, the Perekop – a Russian training ship equipped with anti-aircraft guns and a rocket launcher – was on a four-day visit to Havana and carried out “a series of activities” according to Cuban officials. The admiral himself visited in 2019.
“We’ve seen this kind of thing before, and we expect to see this kind of thing again, and I’m not going to see any particular motivation for it,” Sullivan said, adding that the United States would remain vigilant.
The United States deployed ships and planes that monitored the fleet’s movements even before it arrived in Cuba and assessed that there were no nuclear weapons on board, officials said. to American media, emphasizing that the fleet remained in international waters throughout this time.
What are Cuba and Russia saying?
The Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday that the fleet had conducted exercises in the Atlantic as it headed toward Cuba.
The Russian crew trained to use high-precision missiles using computer-simulated enemy ship targets located at a distance of more than 600 km (over 320 nautical miles), according to the ministry.
Furthermore, the Cuban Foreign Ministry, before the fleet’s arrival, stressed that none of the warships would carry nuclear weapons and added that their presence “does not represent a threat to the region.”
“Visits of naval units from other countries are a historical practice of the revolutionary government with nations that maintain friendly and collaborative relations,” the ministry said in a statement.
Is this a rebroadcast from 1962?
Russia and Cuba have long been united in their opposition to the United States. During the Cold War, their ties deepened intensely, as the then-Soviet Union befriended the ideologically aligned Havana. Moscow has provided financial aid, military equipment and naval training, strengthening the country’s military power in the Caribbean.
Matters came to a head in 1962 when Moscow transferred nuclear weapons to Cuba, provoking a response from the United States, which imposed a naval blockade on Havana. This tense episode has come to be known as the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.
The fall of the Soviet Union saw Cuba lose a major economic partner and fall into economic depression. But in recent years, cooperation between the two countries has deepened further.
Analysts said this week’s naval demonstration marked an intensification of relations, but noted that it did not necessarily mean a repeat of the events of 1962. Rather, Cuba, in particular, is once again drawn to Russia for economic rather than ideological reasons.
How have their economic ties deepened over the past year?
In the longest-lasting trade sanctions in modern history, the United States has banned U.S. entities from trading with Cuba since 1958 – following Fidel Castro’s overthrow of a U.S.-backed government in Havana .
Although sanctions have been eased at different times, they have largely remained in place over the years. In 2015, US President Barack Obama decided to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba after 50 years, but his successor Donald Trump reversed course almost four years later.
This has partly contributed to the continuing economic crisis in the Caribbean country – alongside the government’s shaky economic policies – according to analysts.
“The blockade is considered a crime of genocide,” Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla said at a meeting of the U.N. General Assembly in November, referring to U.S. sanctions.
Deteriorating public services, regular power cuts, food and fuel shortages and high inflation have plunged Cuba into its worst economic crisis in decades.
In recent years, Cuba has again turned to Russia, in an attempt to attract foreign investors. The two countries launched a series of economic partnerships last May, including one that will allow Russian companies to lease Cuban land for 30 years – an unusual move in the largely closed country.
Bilateral trade between Cuba and Russia reached $450 million in 2022, three times that of 2021, Russian officials said. About 90 percent of the trade consisted of sales of petroleum products and soybean oil, with Russia supplying the country with badly needed fuel.
Ricardo Cabrisas, Cuba’s former foreign trade minister, told reporters on the sidelines of a business forum hosting Russian investors in Havana last May that economic ties between Russia and Cuba would only strengthen.
“Nothing and no one can stop him,” Cabrisas said.
