FALCON POWERS – The Pentagon announced on Thursday that a U.S. nuclear submarine is present in Cuba, a day after the arrival of a Russian nuclear-powered submarine to the communist island.
The U.S. Southern Command announced on social media that “the nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Helena is present in the Gulf of Guantanamo as part of a routine visit” in reference to the U.S. naval base on the Cuban island.
The visit, according to the same source, was “planned in advance.”
On Wednesday, the nuclear submarine “Kazan” entered Havana Bay along with three other Russian ships. None of them carry nuclear weapons, according to Cuban authorities. This rare Russian deployment comes about 150 kilometers from the coast of Florida, during a period of high tension between Washington and Moscow due to the war in Ukraine, where the U.S.-backed government is fighting Russian forces.
The United States said it is monitoring the situation in Cuba but stated that the deployment of Russian ships does not pose a direct threat.
During the Cold War, Cuba was an ally of the Soviet Union. The deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba in 1962 triggered a serious crisis that almost led to war between the United States and the Soviet Union.
