-Caveat Lector- Well, this sounds familiar - deja vu time, I suppose! Does anyone remember building bomb shelters during the Cuban missile crisis? Hilary Source: Yahoo News http://dailynews.yahoo.com/ Friday November 12 9:05 AM ET Russia May Fly Nuclear Bombers to Cuba http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/19991112/ts/russia_cuba_1.html By Robert Eksuzyan MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia may fly nuclear-capable strategic bombers to Cuba and Vietnam next year, a Russian air force spokesman said Friday. The latest edition of the weekly military newspaper Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye quoted the head of long-range aviation forces, Mikhail Oparin, as saying such missions were planned and would greatly surprise NATO. Asked to comment, air force spokesman Colonel Nikolai Baranov told Reuters: ``If the government considers it essential to do this, the military will do it.'' ``If they give us the money we will fly, if not we won't fly,'' he said. ``Such a possibility does not exist yet because the money is not there.'' Prime Minister Vladimir Putin vowed Friday to boost funding for Russia's armed forces despite an economic crisis that, for example, has kept flying hours to a bare minimum. Putin spoke after Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev told military commanders the United States was bent on weakening Russia. Earlier this year Russia sent strategic bombers on long-range exercises right up to Alaska and Norway for the first time since the Cold War ended. The defense weekly said those flights had made a big impression on NATO. ``It looks like the 37th air division will surprise the alliance's strategists even more next year,'' the newspaper said, referring to the unit which operates Tupolev-160 swing-wing supersonic bombers that can carry nuclear-tipped cruise missiles. ``According to the chief of long-range aviation, in 2000 it is planned to carry out a flight to the air base at Cam Ranh in Vietnam and also to fly to Cuba,'' it said. There was no suggestion that the planes would be based in Cuba or Vietnam, two Communist countries where Russia still has signals intelligence bases and military personnel. Flights Could Evoke Cuban Crisis Memories But even bomber flights to and from those countries could evoke memories of the Cuban missile crisis which ended in October 1962 when Moscow recalled Soviet missiles from the Caribbean island after a tense stand-off with the United States. The article in the military newspaper was about Russia's deal with Ukraine to swap Ukrainian gas debt for strategic bombers. Russia took delivery of the first three of 11 bombers from Ukraine last week. As well as the eight Tu-160s and three Tu-95MS turbo-prop bombers, it said the deal also included 575 cruise missiles. ``Now it is necessary to look at these aircraft and assess what condition they are in,'' said Baranov, referring to the first three flown to Russia this month. Ukraine handed Russia nuclear weapons after the Soviet Union collapsed but kept the aircraft. The newspaper said Russia aimed to establish a fully fledged unit equipped with 14 Tu-160 planes, which air force staff refer to as the ``nation's weapon.'' ``With one flight they can take off with 168 long-range cruise missiles and take them to the limit from which they can be fired at any state in the world,'' the weekly said. The newspaper said Russia was planning to test a new adapted non-nuclear cruise missile by the end of this month. A Tu-160 would be able to carry 12 of these missiles, it said, noting Russia had learned from NATO's bombing of Yugoslavia. ``The B-2A (U.S. bomber) carried out one percent of the combat missions and unleashed 11 percent of all the bombs and rockets used by NATO,'' it said. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
