05:32 GMT +3 hours20 April 2016
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Incoming commander of the US Strategic Command Admiral Cecil Haney speaks during a change of command ceremony held at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue

US Strategic Command Calls Russian Show of Nuclear Capability ‘Provocative’

© AP Photo/ Admiral Cecil Haney
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US Strategic Command Commander Admiral Cecil Haney also said that Russia has upped the number of long-range strategic aircraft flights penetrating United States and ally air defense identification zones.

 

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Demonstrations of Russia's nuclear capability during a time of crisis with the West are provocative and concerning, US Strategic Command Commander Admiral Cecil Haney said on Thursday.

"The demonstration of their capability during crisis such as long-range strategic aircraft flights, their violation of the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), etc., really shows where we are as a world, including the United States, and where Russia is trying to ascribe to be in terms of coercion including using weapons of mass destruction," Haney stated.

Haney explained that Russia's use of "various signaling" through statements and media reports "associated with their strategic nuclear capabilities… is very provocative."

Russia has upped the number of long-range strategic aircraft flights penetrating United States and ally air defense identification zones, he added.

On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country's Northern Fleet to hold snap combat readiness drills. Some 76,000 troops are taking part in the exercise, held in the Norwegian and Barents Seas. The exercises, scheduled to end on Saturday, aim to check the troops' ability to protect Russia's Arctic borders. Military exercises have also been carried out in the Black Sea and the Far East.

Putin said earlier that Russian military drills have been conducted in international zones only, with strategic aircraft flight being resumed as an answer to US actions near Russian borders. Russia’s plans came as NATO has stepped up its activities near the Russian border, including in the Black Sea and Baltic waters.

 

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nuclear deterrence, US Strategic Command, Cecil Haney, Russia, United States
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