Russia held military drills with its nuclear forces. The drills occurred in the Ivanovo province northeast of Moscow.
They involved roughly 1,000 troops and over 100 vehicles, including Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, according to Axios, who cited the independent Russian news agency Interfax.
Russia’s Strategic Missile Force (SMF), the nuclear arm of the country’s military, conducted the drills, which included “intensive maneuvering actions on combat patrol routes.”
SMF detachments practiced rapidly deploying to field positions. They set up their missile systems, established camouflage and cover, then redeployed to different positions as quickly as possible, per Axios.
The drills reportedly included the deployment of Yars ICBM launchers, which can hit a target over 6,800 miles away.
Russia’s military exercises come in the wake of President Biden’s announcement on May 31 that the latest round of U.S. military aid to Ukraine will include more advanced weapon systems, including medium-range rockets that can travel roughly 50 miles.
The Kremlin has cautioned the United States against providing Ukraine with weapons it feels would prolong the conflict or could be used to attack Russian territory.
Commenting on the latest round of U.S. military aid, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state media he does not trust Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy not to fire the new weapons into Russia.
He went on to criticize the United States, claiming, “The U.S. is pouring gasoline on the fire deliberately and with enthusiasm. [American military aid and weapons] encourage the Ukrainian leadership not to resume peace talks.”
President Biden has denied such characterizations.
In a recent op-ed published in The New York Times on May 31, President Biden insisted, “We are not encouraging or enabling Ukraine to strike beyond its borders. We do not want to prolong the war just to inflict pain on Russia.”
Almost anticipating Russia’s nuclear military drills, Biden wrote in the same op-ed, “We currently see no indication that Russia has intent to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, though Russia’s occasional rhetoric to rattle the nuclear saber is itself dangerous and extremely irresponsible.”
