Russian admiral: Our Black Sea fleet can destroy NATO’s group in 20 minutes
DEBKAfile Special Report
August 29, 2008, 7:56 PM (GMT+02:00)
Former Russian Black Sea Fleet commander, Adm. Eduard Baltin was quoted by Moscow media as saying Friday, Aug. 29: “Despite the apparent strength of the NATO naval group in the Black Sea… a single salvo from the Moskva missile cruiser and two or three missile boats would be enough to annihilate the entire group. Within 20 minutes, the waters would be clear.”
Adm. Baltin added: "We will not strike first, and they do not look like people with suicidal tendencies."
The Russian Fleet deploys 16 warships in the Black Sea compared with 10 NATO vessels – three American, Polish, German and Spanish frigates, and four Turkish warships, soon to be augmented by another six, including the USS Mount Whitney, which is considered one of the most advanced warships in the world.
In Washington, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino rejected Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin’s assertion that US personnel were in the combat zone during the war in Georgia and “someone in the United States” provoked the conflict to help one of the candidates in the American presidential race.
In his first major remark since the Georgian crisis erupted, Putin quoted information provided by the Russian military but offered no evidence. Perino called his allegations “patently false and “not rational.”
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If no one was hurt, I would say go ahead and try. It would be amusing (again, if no one was hurt) to watch them try.
The Russian military may be impressive when it comes to battling down a significantly weaker force, but it cannot stand against the US - it is propaganda - humorous.
Russia cannot and will not ever be a world power again. It can be a regional power. It can be helpful in mediating disputes between countries it serves and are served by it. It cannot stand as a world power. It is understandable the feelings associated with this realization. Once a world power, now not. Even with the modernization of its nuclear stockpile, navy ... it cannot ever again rise to where it once was. Can it threaten the US? Yes. Any regional power (Iran) could be a threat.
Russian beligerance
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