MOSCOW, June 21 (PNA/Sputnik) — The Arleigh-Burke class destroyer will enter the sea in support of the so-called Operation Atlantic Resolve designed to reassure US allies of Washington’s support amid tensions with Russia over Moscow’s alleged interference in Ukraine’s internal affairs.
The USS Laboon is fitted with two Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense Systems, capable of deploying long-range Tomahawk subsonic cruise missiles.
NATO’s activities close to the Russian coast intensified with the escalation of the year-long conflict in southeast Ukraine.
Russia regards NATO’s presence close to its western borders as a security threat. Russia’s envoy to NATO said that Moscow would bolster its defense capabilities in the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea to offset the bloc’s continued military buildup. (PNA/Sputnik)