A Russian fleet consisting of three ships and a nuclear-powered submarine arrived in the port of Havana (Cuba) a week ago. These are the rescue tug “Nikolai Checker”, the frigate “Admiral Gorshkov”, the tanker “Pashin”, and the submarine “Kazan”.
The Cuban diplomat indicated that “this visit is consistent with the historical friendly relations between Cuba and the Russian Federation and strictly adheres to international rules to which Cuba is a state party,” stressing that none of the ships were transporting nuclear weapons.
However, to reach Cuba, the fleet had to advance along the Irish and Scottish coasts. According to a report collected by: you are inKazan caused a temporary security alert in Great Britain. The submarine was sighted on 5 June by a British Boeing P8 Poseidon submarine chaser and tracked as it passed from the Irish coast to Scotland.
The ship was also seen at the British nuclear weapons base at Faslane-on-Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland, although it did not enter British waters. This is precisely where the UK keeps most of its submarine fleet and most of the country’s nuclear weapons.
Concern for Ireland
The British Army’s greatest concern was that the Kazan submarine might be carrying out a mission to search for weak points in the area.
“The weak point in the British Isles is Ireland,” according to retired Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Crawford, who adds: “They have almost no military capacity to monitor or deter such a Russian advance, and the Kremlin has not gone unnoticed.”
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