Russian warships headed to Caribbean for drills next week

United States officials have announced that Russian warships and aircraft are set to arrive in the Caribbean for a military exercise, a move seen as a show of force amid increasing tensions over Western military support for Ukraine.

According to two officials, the exercise, which will be under U.S. military surveillance, will involve a “handful” of Russian ships and support vessels.

Cuba’s foreign ministry confirmed in a news release that the ships will dock in Havana from June 12 to June 17, emphasizing that none will carry nuclear weapons and assuring that their presence “does not represent a threat to the region.”

While this is not the first instance of Russian naval presence in the Caribbean, this particular exercise comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin has hinted at taking “asymmetrical steps” globally in response to President Joe Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to use U.S.-provided weapons to strike within Russia, aiming to protect Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.