According to NATO, Russia is continuously strengthening its operations under water. The Alliance claims to have observed most Russian submarine activity since the end of the Cold War this year. Spokeswoman Oana Lungescu told the editorial network Germany. In an operation around Norway in October alone, up to ten Russian submarines were observed at the same time.
NATO will react to this, the RND further quotes the spokeswoman. The western alliance plans, among other things, more patrols in the North Atlantic. In addition, they will invest in modern anti-submarine combat from the air. The North Atlantic is "of vital importance for the security of Europe" due to military supply routes, civil trade routes and communication channels, "said the spokeswoman.
One of the scenarios circulating at NATO is that Russian submarines could cut the submarine cables between the United States and Europe. Most of the Internet communication flows through these cables. Attacks of this kind could be part of hybrid warfare, i.e. a mixture of open and covert acts of war.
Recently, concerns about a possible arms race between Washington and Moscow had grown again. It had only become known at the end of last week that the USA had tested a ground-based medium-range missile after it had withdrawn from the INF disarmament treaty.
Hardly any prospect of an early agreement on arms controls
The ballistic missile was fired from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California towards the Pacific, a base spokesman said. The United States had already tested a cruise missile in mid-August.
Russia and China had warned of a new arms race after the United States' first missile test following the termination of the INF contract in August and requested a special session of the United Nations Security Council. Moscow assessed the test flight at the time as evidence that the United States had planned the exit from the INF disarmament treaty for a long time.
There are currently hardly any hopes for new effective agreements on arms control.
