Russia will hold naval exercises in the Caribbean this summer, with stops in Cuba and Venezuela, as tensions rise with the US over Ukraine

Russia will hold naval exercises in the Caribbean this summer with possible port calls in Cuba and Venezuela, US officials have revealed, in what Moscow describes as a show of force as tensions rise over Western military support for Ukraine.

A senior official said the US is monitoring Russian warships and aircraft and they are expected to arrive in the region in the coming weeks, ahead of a “global” naval exercise by Vladimir Putin’s forces in the fall.

The upcoming exercise, which will be monitored by the US military, will involve a “handful” of Russian ships and support vessels, two officials said.

They added that the exercises are “certainly” part of a broader Russian response to US support for Ukraine, but that it is also an attempt by Putin to show that his navy is still capable of global power projection after he has lost several ships to Ukrainian attacks.

It comes next Vladimir Putin warned that Moscow could take “asymmetric steps” elsewhere in the world in response to the president Joe Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to use US-supplied weapons to attack inside Russia to protect Kharkov.

Russian naval cadets last month attended the annual military parade dedicated to Victory Day celebrations

Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow could take “asymmetric steps” elsewhere in the world

Tensions between the US and Russia have continued to rise since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and have increased further following the US action, which Ukraine has been repeatedly called for in recent months.

“This is about Russia showing that it is still capable of some level of global power projection,” a US official said when the news was revealed to reporters.

Relevant lawmakers on Capitol Hill about Thursday’s activity, they added.

“As part of Russia’s regular military exercises, we expect Russia to conduct increased naval and air activities near the United States this summer.

“These actions will culminate in a global Russian naval exercise this fall,” the unnamed official said.

The deployments are considered part of routine Navy activities, and while officials admitted they were “notable,” they also emphasized that they are “not concerned by Russia’s deployment, which does not pose a direct threat to the United States.”

The Biden administration has not viewed the deployment with alarm, as Russia has sailed ships to the Western Hemisphere annually from 2013 to 2020.

“We can expect more of these activities in the future, although we note that these deployments come at a cost to the Russian Navy, which is struggling to maintain readiness and conduct deployments with an aging fleet,” the official said.

Ukrainian military officials said in March that Russia had lost a third of its Black Sea Fleet to Ukrainian attacks during the past two years of war.

Images show the first known use of US-supplied HIMARS missiles by Ukraine, hitting a key military target in Russia

The site of a Russian air defense system in Belgorod is on fire after a suspected HIMARS attack

Russia has not informed the US of its upcoming exercise, but the ships’ movements have been monitored by the US Navy, the officials said.

Although Russia did not notify the U.S. — which countries often do to avoid miscalculations — the officials said militaries around the world have the right to conduct exercises in international waters and do so regularly.

On Friday, for example, about twenty NATO countries, including the US, will begin BALTOPS 24, a major naval and air exercise in the Baltic region near Russia.

The officials said they expect the Russian ships to remain in the region through the summer and will likely conduct similar follow-up exercises in the Caribbean after they end.

It comes as Putin has openly acknowledged the ‘possibility’ of a ‘full-scale Third World War’ – with the dictator threatening ‘fatal consequences‘ for Western allies allowing Ukraine to use their weapons on Russian territory.

Ukraine’s challenge in repelling Russia’s invasion has prompted European leaders to take a tougher stance on Moscow as the war enters its third year, with moves to send troops east and record defense investments.