US to Strengthen Its Military Presence in the Atlantic Due to Russian Aggression

Photo from Ukrinform–UATV

 

The United States Navy will soon increase its presence in the Atlantic Ocean and rebuild military command structures in response to the growing Russian military activity, Voice of America reported.

A sharp increase in Russian naval activity in the Arctic and north Atlantic in the years since its invasion of eastern Ukraine has prompted the U.S. Navy to resurrect a command it disestablished seven years ago.

Russia has increased its patrols in the Baltic Sea, the North Atlantic and the Arctic, NATO officials say, although the size of its navy is smaller now than during the Cold War era.

“The return to great power competition and a resurgent Russia demands that NATO refocus on the Atlantic to ensure dedicated reinforcement of the continent and demonstrate a capable and credible deterrence effect,” Johnny Michael, a Pentagon spokesman, said on May 4.

“This is a dynamic response to a dynamic security environment. So as we’ve seen this great-power competition emerge, the Atlantic Ocean is as dynamic a theater as any and particular the North Atlantic, so as we consider high-end naval warfare, fighting in the Atlantic, that will be the second fleet’s responsibility,” said chief of naval operations admiral, John Richardson, onboard the carrier George H.W.Bush.

The second fleet, based in Norfolk, Virginia, resumes operations on July 1. This fleet was deactivated in 2011 for reasons of cost savings and organizational restrucructing.

One concern the second fleet will immediately address: the threat from a now-modest number of Russian nuclear attack submarines capable of cruising in the depths off the East Coast of the U.S.