World News Blog

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Russian bombers visit Venezuela

Russia and the US continue to revive memories of the Cold War as Russian long-range Tu-160 bombers visited Venezuela on Wednesday.

Further to the north, Cuba is hosting Russian troops and four Russian warships for military maneuvers.

Venezuela is becoming another Cuba in terms of military might with increased arms purchases from Moscow and Beijing. President Hugo Chavez has ordered advanced fighters and submarines to prepare for what he believes is an inevitable US invasion.

The Russian presence in this hemisphere is reminiscent of the Soviet period when Cuba served as an important outpost for Moscow. Although the Russian military has downsized considerably since the fall of the Iron Curtain, recent tensions with the US and NATO have ignited a new militarization with significant armed forces upgrades. High oil prices are helping Moscow pay for the new weapons procurements and for military operations in distant regions.

Canada.com

Cold war echo: Russian military maneuvers with Venezuela
Christian Science Monitor - 58 minutes ago
Russia sent two long-range bombers to Venezuela Wednesday and will send warships and soldiers for joint exercises in November. By José Orozco | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Caracas, Venezuela; and Mexico City - The last time a Russian ...
Video: Russian bombers arrive in Venezuela RussiaToday
Russia's Venezuela Foray: Tit for Tat? TIME

Labels: cold war, cuba, militarization, russia, venezuela

Friday, August 15, 2008

Cold War Fears

On an interview with CNN the other night, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev complained that the U.S. military budget at more than $600 billion a year accounts for about half of the entire world's military spending.

While Russia greatly pared down its armed forces after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the U.S. still seems to be spending at Cold War levels. It is true that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq account for a healthy amount of this spending but the great bulk of it has little relation to what is going on in those countries.

During the Cold War, the U.S. and Soviets went neck-to-neck in matching each other's weapons systems. In those days, the Soviets seemed bent on increasing what is known as "force projection."

They build large "Frontal Aviation" forces consisting of fighters capable of taking off and landing on highways if necessary. These airplanes were to accompany the vast Soviet tank armies on what many thought was a planned invasion of Western Europe.

They also were investing large sums of money on building a "blue water navy" apparently set on building a large number of aircraft carriers.

However, when the Soviet Union collapsed, everything changes. Russia now has only one lone aircraft carrier. It's air force is well outnumbered by that of the United States, with the air defense emphasis now shifted toward cheaper but still sophisticated surface to air missile systems.

Russia also stopped projecting its forces in Vietnam, Cuba and other areas as did the Soviets. That is until the last few years.

In 2008, Russia well sharply increase its defense budget by 25 percent. It has an ambitious program in place to renew half of its weapons systems in the next seven years. Moscow is also more aggressively selling its weapons abroad probably in part to help pay for its own buildup. Russia is again projecting its forces overseas.

A great opportunity for the "peace dividend" appears to have been lost. There are many theories as to why this has happened from the unquenchable desire for world dominance to the insatiable appetite of the military-industrial complex. And of course don't forget the need to control the world's oil supplies. Whatever the cause, don't expect this "great game" to end anytime soon.

Aljazeera.net
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