{http://warmonitor.net/news/2015/09/07/russian-submarine-hauling-nuclear-warheads-en-route-to-syria/}
In what could be a major escalation in tensions between Russia and the West, Israeli media reported that the world’s largest submarine, the Dmitri Donsky, has been sent to the Syrian coast in what appears to be a heavy display of nuclear force. The submarine, deemed the “Typhoon” by NATO, is stocked with 20 Bulva intercontinental ballistic missiles, with a combined capability of carrying up to 200 nuclear warheads. The nuclear missiles have a range of over 6,000 miles, placing them well within reach of North America’s East coast.
This would likely be in response to a warning issued by the United States to Moscow over a Russian military buildup currently unfolding in Syria. Russia has dismissed these claims despite multiple intelligence sources stating otherwise. It’s also been discovered that Russia has been transporting high grade weapons over the past few months to Syrian President Assad’s forces, for use against the US-backed rebel fighters in the country. There are currently nearly a dozen nations conducting airstrikes against targets in Syria as part of a US backed coalition against ISIS. Britain and France are also considering the use of military force inside Syria in response to the Syrian refugee crisis currently taking place in Europe.
This would mark the first time that nuclear assets were brought to the table in a series of tit-for-tat scenarios since tensions between Russia and the West began to escalate following the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine last year. The introduction of this submarine is being taken as a bold message that Moscow will not allow the US to impede on its military intervention in Syria, demonstrating that Russia is willing to go through great extremes in supporting Assad’s regime.
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The Typhoon departed from its North Sea base on September 4th, and is being escorted by two anti-submarine warships. It will take approximately ten days for the underwater vessel to reach its destination. There is currently no way of knowing how the Pentagon might respond to such a move from the Kremlin, but it’s possible that the West may counter by introducing its own nuclear capabilities into the mix as a deterrent. This would likely result in a series of escalations that could gradually increase the potential for a new nuclear stand-off between the two military superpowers.
This comes at a time when just today, Russian President Vladimir Putin also placed military forces on high alert, likely for the purpose of conducting snap drills in a continued attempt to flex muscle toward the West.