Russian Military Expert Suggests Kremlin Plans Nuclear Strikes on US Ships

Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko recently suggested on state-owned TV that the Kremlin plans to attack U.S. ships with nuclear weapons.

Late last month, U.S. officials revealed to the Associated Press that President Joe Biden has since allowed Ukraine to use American-made weapons to fight against Russia's attacks or planned attacks in the Kharkiv region. The weapons are only allowed to be used to defend Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, and Kyiv is not to use American-provided long-range missiles.

"In my opinion, there is only one adequate, fast and effective response to the increased strikes against the territory of the Russian Federation with American long-range weapons, since Biden and [U.S. national security adviser Jake] Sullivan have given the green light and Ukraine's Armed Forces will carry it out: total destruction of all electrical generation in Ukraine," Korotchenko recently said on state-owned TV, according to an English-translated clip posted to YouTube on Saturday by watchdog group Russian Media Monitor.

Russian Media Monitor was created by journalist Julia Davis "in an effort to combat Russian propaganda."

Korotchenko then mentioned the Russian warships that conducted drills in the Atlantic Ocean on their way to Cuba, as reported by the Russian Defense Ministry. The ministry said that a Russian navy ship and Moscow's Kazan nuclear-powered submarine conducted the exercise to simulate a missile strike on a fleet of enemy ships.

The Russian warships are scheduled to be in Havana from Wednesday until this upcoming Monday, according to the Cuban Foreign Ministry. The Cuban ministry said that none of the warships are carrying nuclear weapons and said that the warships do "not represent a threat to the region." Cuban officials, meanwhile, have called their relations with Russia "historically friendly," according to the AP.

"Now, about the arrival of our ships and submarines to Cuba, it was officially stated that the Kazan is the only sub that came there, as part of a naval group of warships of the Northern Fleet," Korotchenko said. "In reality, we can guess that Kazan wasn't the only one, but there were a few Russian multipurpose nuclear subs in different parts of the Atlantic Ocean, carrying out their tasks."

He continued: "These tasks are clear: countering American aircraft carrier strike groups. Of course, if a strike is carried out, as it was stated, several hundred kilometers away, against an American aircraft carrier strike group, this strike would be done with special ordnance for maximum effectiveness, speed and reliability."

State TV host Evgeny Popov chimed in: "Special ordnance means nuclear weapons." To which, Korotchenko confirmed, "Yes, exactly, a nuclear warhead on a Tsirkon [missile]."

The host of the show, Olga Skabeyeva, added: "Is this the new terminology so we don't scare people?...Friends, this is not a nuclear war, but a special war!"

On Wednesday, Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said of the Russian warships in Cuba: "We've been tracking the Russians' plans for this. This is not a surprise. We're always, constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near U.S. territorial waters. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States."

Earlier on the Russian TV show, Popov accused the U.S. of illegally occupying Guantanamo Bay. Cuba has been leasing a naval base in Guantanamo Bay to the U.S. since 1903.

"We again remind you: there is an occupied part of Cuba. This territory is called Guantanamo," Popov said. "They excuse it by saying they've rented it for $1 from the Cuban government at one point. We know, these are just fairy tales of the Vienna Woods. This is a real occupation of a sovereign nation! This territory is decent, with good military infrastructure that could be of good use to the Russian Federation for its base or at least logistics facilities."

In 1934, the cost to rent the base was set at roughly $4,000 a year, according to The Washington Post.

Newsweek has reached out to the Russian government via email and the U.S. Navy via online form for comment.

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