Russia to resume SSBN patrols of worldwide strategic waterways

Special to WorldTribune.com

Compiled by Miles Yu, Geostrategy-Direct.com

In a throwback to the Cold War, Russia announced plans to beef up its submarine patrols of strategic waters around the world.

The Russian nuclear submarine Yekaterinburg in a March 2011 file photo. /AP/Andrei Pronin

“On June 1 or a bit later we will resume constant patrolling of the world’s oceans by strategic nuclear submarines,” Russian Navy Commander Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky announced Feb. 3.

Global patrols by nuclear-powered, ballistic missile-carrying submarines or SSBNs were a hallmark of the Soviet Union’s nuclear deterrence strategy.

During the Cold War, the Soviet Navy conducted hundreds of such patrols annually to preserve its first- and second-strike capabilities.

In 1984, as the Soviet Union was well into its decline, the Soviet Navy conducted still conducted 230 patrols.

Today, Russia conducts fewer than 10 such patrols in nearby waters.

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