Russia Military Offers Cuba Air Defence Aid

[Purveyor]

Source: Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia will offer to share its air defence expertise with Cuba when a military delegation visits the Caribbean island this week, Interfax news agency reported on Monday.

"The Russian and Cuban military will exchange experience in organising tactical air defence and in training officers," Interfax quoted Russian Land Forces spokesman Igor Konashenkov as saying.

The two sides will "discuss the prospect of training Cuban servicemen at the tactical air defence academies and training centres in Russia, using upgraded Russian-made military hardware," Interfax quoted him as saying.

The delegation, led by the chief of Russia's tactical air defence headquarters, Lieutenant General Alexander Maslov, will also look at "ways to strengthen relations between the Russian armed forces and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba," Konashenkov was quoted as saying.

---SNIP
In the past few months, Moscow has stepped up contacts with both Cuba and Venezuela, another South American critic of the United States.

Read more: http://africa.reuters.com/world/news/usnTRE49Q2IL.html

[AlphaCentauri]

1. I'm waiting for McCain to say - Today we are all Cubans - n/t

[HeraldSquare212]

2. Russia's finally playing tit-for-tat. It's funny: threatening to give Cuba nukes

is what got us to take nukes out of Turkey. I wonder if they're trying to create the conditions for a deal: we'll leave your sphere of influence if you leave ours.

[atreides1]

3. What nukes???

The Russians are going to provide air defence expertise, there was no mention of providing Cuba with nuclear weapons of any kind!

[HeraldSquare212]

4. I was referring to the Cuban missile crisis.

[David__77]

5. If Russia sets up shop in Cuba, Venezuela, Vietnam, North Korea, Syria, and Libya...

...maybe that would be a stabilizing factor, reining in the US.

[Pavulon]

8. Russia is a petro state and can now not afford to set up shop in russia

they are getting plastered in the economic downturn and their main export lost half its value last month.

[Pterodactyl]

6. Cuba better knock it off or we'll have to give 'em the old JFK treatment.

[Pavulon]

7. Seems georgia had decent success 4 kills

including a tu-22. 3 su-25's. I can give them advice, if attacked by air by any real military power, give up.

The real take away from georgia is how sorry the russian forces and gear were.

[iamthebandfanman]

9. just think, it coulda been us

bringing change and money to the cuban people.

[wvbygod]

10. JFK would not approve

That's good enough for me.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

12. What he did not approve was nukes. Is Russia sending nukes to Cuba? I doubt it. -nt

[Billy Burnett]

11. Just great :( - A fresh reason (in many minds) to maintain the US sanctions against Cuba..

This will bolster the anti Cuba campaigns in S. Florida used by most all Repug AND Dem candidates who campaign here, that so many uninformed Americans fall for.

[hack89]

13. The Pentagon will be willing to pay for this

based on the actual combat history of Soviet/Russian equipment, tactics and doctrine. There is a reason third world countries buy western equipment if they can afford it.