US sends submarine to Cuba as Russian warships visit island

NEW YORK:  The US sent the fast attack submarine USS Helena to Guantanamo Bay as Russian naval ships are visiting Cuba. The US Southern Comm...

NEW YORK:  The US sent the fast attack submarine USS Helena to Guantanamo Bay as Russian naval ships are visiting Cuba.

The US Southern Command said the US submarine pulled into the Cuban bay as part of a "routine port visit."

However, The Associated Press described the port call as "a show of force" as Russian warships gathered in the Caribbean.

The AP reported that other US ships also have been tracking and monitoring the Russian drills, which Pentagon officials say do not represent a threat to the US.

The Russian Defense Ministry said on June 12 that Russian naval ships had completed exercises to rehearse the use of precision weapons, and called at the port of Havana. The ships include the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, the nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine Kazan, the Akademik Pashin medium tanker and the Nikolay Chiker rescue tugboat.

The Cuban Defense Ministry said none of the ships carries nuclear weapons, so their port call does not pose a threat to the region.

-News Feed