Russia is making veiled threats about moving nuclear missiles near to the United States coastline as a warning to Joe Biden as anger grows toward the Democrat president.
The tensions are mounting as Russian President Vladimir Putin pushes hard against the Biden administration to get what he wants in Europe.
The New York Times is reporting that Putin “wants to extend Russia’s sphere of influence to Eastern Europe and secure written commitments that NATO will never again enlarge.
“If he is frustrated in reaching that goal, some of his aides suggested on the sidelines of the negotiations last week, then he would pursue Russia’s security interests with results that would be felt acutely in Europe and the United States.”
“There were hints, never quite spelled out, that nuclear weapons could be shifted to places — perhaps not far from the United States coastline — that would reduce warning times after a launch to as little as five minutes, potentially igniting a confrontation with echoes of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis,” the report adds.
“The current crisis was touched off by the Kremlin’s release of a series of demands that, if the U.S. and its allies agreed, would effectively restore Russia’s sphere of influence close to Soviet-era lines, before NATO expanded into Eastern Europe.
“It has also demanded that all U.S. nuclear weapons be withdrawn from Europe, saying it felt threatened by their presence — though the types and locations of those weapons haven’t changed in years.
“And it wants a stop to all Western troop rotations through former Warsaw Pact states that have since joined NATO.”
The Biden admin has so far responded by threatening economic sanctions on Russia.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan has also tried to sound tough while talking to reporters.
“The United States and our allies are prepared for any contingency, any eventuality,’’ Sullivan claimed.
“We’re prepared to keep moving forward down the diplomatic path in good faith, and we’re prepared to respond to fresh acts.
“And beyond that, all we can do is get ready. And we are ready.”
U.S. Intelligence has warned that Russia could potentially invade Ukraine within the next month.
Intel officials warn that the Russian government may use a so-called “false flag operation” to justify any potential invasion.
CNBC reported:
A senior U.S. official and a former U.S. official confirmed to NBC News late Friday that the Biden administration is considering arming Ukrainian insurgents who would in essence fight a guerilla war against Russian forces if Putin invades Ukraine.
Last week, a top Russian official refused to rule out sending military forces to Latin America amid rising tensions with the U.S. under the Biden administration.
“Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, who led the Russian delegation in Monday’s talks with the U.S. in Geneva, said in televised remarks that he would ‘neither confirm nor exclude’ the possibility that Russia could send military assets to Cuba and Venezuela if the talks fail and U.S. pressure on Russia mounts,” the Associated Press reported.
“The negotiations in Geneva and Wednesday’s NATO-Russia meeting in Vienna failed to narrow the gap on Moscow’s security demands amid a buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine.
“While Moscow demanded a halt to NATO expansion, Washington and its allies firmly rejected that as a nonstarter.”
