Russian President Vladimir Putin began exercises with ballistic and cruise missiles on Saturday. amid escalating tensions between Moscow and the West, who fears an early Russian invasion of the Ukraine.
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The Kremlin indicated that the Russian strategic exercises carried out this Saturdayin the midst of a crisis with the West around Ukraineinvolved “cruise and ballistic missile” fire.
“The objectives set during the exercises of the strategic deterrence forces were fully achieved. All missiles hit their targets,” the Russian presidency said in a statement.
Russian public television broadcast images of Putin sitting next to his Belarusian counterpart and ally Alexander Lukashenko, listening in a crisis room to the reports of his generals by videoconference.
The Russian Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigou, indicated that the exercises involved firing of “Kinjal” hypersonic ballistic missiles and “Zircon” hypersonic cruise missiles. These are new Russian weapons that Putin recently called “invincible.”
Peskov, quoted by the Interfax agency, stated that at the end of the exercises the Russian leader will not make any statements to the press.
The day before, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that “on February 19, 2022, under the leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, Vladimir Putin, planned exercises of the Strategic Containment Forces will be carried out, in which ballistic and cruise missiles will be launched.
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Units of the Russian Aerospace Forces, the Southern Military District, the Strategic Missile Forces, and the Black Sea and Northern fleets participate in the exercises.
These exercises, previously planned, according to Defense, are aimed at check the readiness of the military leadership, launch units and crews of missile carriers, as well as verify the reliability of strategic nuclear and conventional weapons in the Russian arsenal.
Peskov said yesterday that the maneuvers of the nuclear forces do not have to alarm the West, since it is a “fairly regular” training and different countries have been notified through various channels.
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The President of Belarus, Alexandr Lukashenko, who arrived in Russia on Friday for negotiations with Putin, expressed his desire to attend ballistic missile exercises together with the Russian leader from a command center.
EFE