Putin to oversee nuclear drills amid standoff over Ukraine

Moscow – President Vladimir Putin will oversee workouts by Russia’s nuclear forces on Saturday involving the launch of ballistic and cruise missiles, the protection ministry stated, in its newest present of energy at a time of acute stress with the West over Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated the workouts have been a part of a daily coaching course of and denied they signaled an escalation of the standoff. He stated Putin’s function was important, and the president was doubtless to participate from a “scenario heart.”

The drills comply with an enormous sequence of strikes by Russia’s armed forces up to now 4 months which have included a build-up of troops — estimated by the West to quantity 150,000 or extra — to the north, east and south of Ukraine.

Putin and different high officers ceaselessly check with the truth that Russia, along with the US, is without doubt one of the world’s main nuclear powers.

The protection ministry stated the drills would check the readiness of navy command and management, fight crews, warships and strategic missile carriers, in addition to the reliability of strategic nuclear and non-nuclear weapons.

They’d contain Russia’s Aerospace Forces, its Southern Navy District, Strategic Missile Forces, Northern Fleet and the Black Sea Fleet.

Russia’s strategic rocket forces quantity 50,000 personnel out of its general lively navy forces of 900,000, the Worldwide Institute for Strategic Research stated this week in its annual Navy Stability report. It stated their know-how had been considerably upgraded over the previous six years.