<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_submarine_Severodvinsk">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">The Russian Yasen-class nuclear attack submarine Severodvinsk</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>NATO officials have repeatedly warned about the rising threat posed by Russian submarines.</strong></li><li><strong>A major concern is those subs' land-attack capabilities, which now allow them to strike deep in Europe.</strong></li><li><strong>NATO navies have ramped up anti-submarine-warfare tactics, but those land-attack missiles may mean ASW needs to change.</strong></li></ul><p>NATO naval officials have repeatedly warned about Russia's submarines, a force they say is more sophisticated and active.</p><p>US Navy officials have said several times that Russian subs are doing more now than at any time since the Cold War, though intelligence estimates from that time indicate they're <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-increasing-around-uk-and-in-north-atlantic-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">still far below</a> Cold War peaks.</p><p>They're also worried about where those subs are going. US officials have suggested more than once that Russian subs are <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-increased-naval-activity-threatening-undersea-cables-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lurking around vital undersea cables</a>. (The US <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-treasury-sanctions-russian-companies-helping-target-undersea-cables-2018-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">did something similar</a> during the Cold War.)</p><p>But the most significant capability Russian subs have added may be what they can do on land.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Syria-Russia/3b47a29fb02f463e803c2708035b2e21/11/0">AP/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service</a></span></p><p class="caption">Long-range Kalibr cruise missiles are launched by a Russian Navy ship in the eastern Mediterranean</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Asked about the best example of growth by Russia's submarines, Adm. James Foggo, the head of US Naval Forces in Europe and Africa, pointed to their missiles, which offer relatively newfound land-attack capability.</p><p>"The Kalibr class cruise missile, for example, has been launched from coastal-defense systems, long-range aircraft, and submarines off the coast of Syria," Foggo said on the latest edition of his command's podcast, "<a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-561475303/podcast-episode-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">On the Horizon</a>."</p><p>"They've shown the capability to be able to reach pretty much all the capitals in Europe from any of the bodies of water that surround Europe," he added.</p><p>The Kalibr family of missiles - which includes anti-ship, land-attack, and anti-submarine variants - has been around since the 1990s.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/russia-nato-a2ad-environment/">CSIS Missile Defense Project</a></span></p><p class="caption">Ranges of Russia's Kalibr missiles when fired from seas around Europe. Light red circles are the land-attack version. Dark red circles indicate the anti-ship version</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>The land-attack version can be fired from subs and surface ships and can carry a 1,000-pound warhead to targets between 930 miles and 1,200 miles away, <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/ss-n-30a/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to CSIS' Missile <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">Defense</keyword> Project. It is said to fly 65 feet above the sea and at 164 to 492 feet over land.</p><p>After the first strikes in Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said the Kalibr was accurate to "a few meters" - giving them a capability not unlike the US's Tomahawk cruise missiles.</p><p>In 2011, the US Office of Naval Intelligence <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/ss-n-30a/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">quoted</a> a Russian defense industry official as saying Moscow planned to put the Kalibr on all new nuclear and non-nuclear subs, frigates, and larger ships and that it was likely to be retrofitted on older vessels.</p><p>But the system wasn't used in combat until 2015.</p><p>In October that year, Russian warships in the Caspian Sea fired <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/watch-russian-warships-launch-cruise-missiles-against-targets-in-syria-from-the-caspian-sea-2015-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">26 Kalibr missiles</a> at ISIS targets in Syria. The submarine Veliky Novgorod <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-russian-submarine-fires-cruise-missiles-at-islamic-state-targets-in-syrias-deir-al-zor-ria-2017-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fired three Kalibrs</a> from the eastern Mediterranean at ISIS targets in eastern Syria later that month, and that December a Russian sub fired four Kalibrs while en route to its home port on the Black Sea.</p><h2>'<span>They're messaging us'</span></h2><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pihdx-i8VQ">IN THE NOW via Youtube</a></span></p><p class="caption">A Russian Navy ship launches Kalibr cruise missiles from the Caspian sea at targets over 1000 miles away in Syria.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>Russian <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-warships-launch-cruise-missiles-against-targets-in-aleppo-2016-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">surface ships</a> and <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/russia-targets-isis-kalibr-cruise-missiles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">subs have</a> fired <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-russian-frigate-fires-cruise-missiles-at-islamic-state-targets-near-syrias-deir-al-zor-2017-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kalibr missiles</a> at targets in Syria <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ap-russian-sub-fires-cruises-missiles-at-militants-in-syria-2017-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">numerous times</a> since. But their use may be more about sending a message to Western foes than gaining an edge in Syria.</span></p><p><span>"There's no operational or tactical requirement to do it," NORTHCOM Commander Adm. William Gortney told Congress in early 2016. "They're messaging us that they have this capability."</span></p><p>Russia has used "Syria as a bit of a test bed for showing off its new submarine capabilities and the ability to shoot cruise missiles from submarines," Magnus Nordenman, the director of the Transatlantic Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Business Insider</a> earlier this year.</p><p>A 2015 Office of Naval Intelligence report <a href="https://www.janes.com/images/assets/147/70147/Game_changer_Russian_sub-launched_cruise_missiles_bring_strategic_effect_edit.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cited</a> by Jane's noted that the "Kalibr provides even modest platforms … with significant offensive capability and, with the use of the land attack missile, all platforms have a significant ability to hold distant fixed ground targets at risk using conventional warheads."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>(Russian Defence Ministry Press Service photo via AP)</span></p><p class="caption">A long-range Kalibr cruise missile is launched from the Krasnodar submarine in the Mediterranean, in an image provided by the Russian Defense Ministry press service on May 31, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>"The proliferation of this capability within the new Russian Navy is profoundly changing its ability to deter, [or to] threaten or destroy adversary targets," the report said.</p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">While Russia's submarine force is still smaller than its Soviet predecessor, that cruise-missile capability has led some to argue NATO needs to look farther north, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-active-in-north-atlantic-but-russia-sub-activity-may-be-in-arctic-2018-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">beyond the Greenland-Iceland-UK Gap that was a chokepoint</a> for Russian submarines entering the Atlantic during the Cold War.</span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Today's Russian subs "don't have to go very far out in order to hit ports and airports and command and control centers in Europe, so they don't have to approach the GIUK Gap," Nordenman said in a recent interview. "In that sense the GIUK Gap is not as important as it used to be."</span></span></p><h2>'We need to deny that edge'</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Marit Hommedal/NTB Scanpix</span></p><p class="caption">A Dutch helicopter participates in NATO's Dynamic Mongoose anti-submarine exercise in the North Sea off the coast of Norway, May 4, 2015.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Foggo said US submarines still have the edge, but the subs Russia can deploy "are perhaps some of the most silent and lethal in the world."</p><p>Concerns about land-attack missiles now mix with NATO's concern about bringing reinforcements and supplies from the US to Europe during a conflict.</p><p>"That's why Russian submarines are a concern," Nordenman said earlier this year. "One, because they can obviously sink ships and so on, but related, you can use cruise missiles to shoot at ports and airfields and so on."</p><p>"We know that Russian submarines are in the Atlantic, testing our defenses, confronting out command of the seas and preparing a very complex underwater battle space to try to give them the edge in any future conflict," Foggo said. "We need to deny that edge."</p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy</span></p><p class="caption">US Navy crew members on board a P-8A Poseidon assisting in search and rescue operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the  in the Indian Ocean, March 16, 2014.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">This has led to more emphasis on anti-submarine warfare, a facet of naval combat that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-increasing-anti-submarine-warfare-efforts-to-counter-russian-subs-2018-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NATO forces focused on less</a> after the Cold War.</span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">The US Navy has asked for more money to buy sonobuoys, supplies <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-requests-more-sonobuoys-amid-concerns-about-russian-subs-2018-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fell critically short</a> after un "unexpected high anti-submarine warfare operational tempo in 2017." NATO members also plan to buy <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-p8a-poseidon-sub-hunting-aircraft-features-sales-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more US-made P-8A Poseidons</a>, widely considered to be the best sub-hunting aircraft on the market.</span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">But the Kalibr's anti-ship capability has also raises questions about whether ASW itself needs to change.</span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-weight: 400;">At a conference in early 2017, Lt. Cmdr. Ian Varley, deputy commander of the Royal Navy's Merlin helicopter force, <a href="https://www.janes.com/images/assets/147/70147/Game_changer_Russian_sub-launched_cruise_missiles_bring_strategic_effect_edit.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> anti-ship missiles were pushing ASW away from "traditional … close-in, cloak and-dagger fighting" to situations where an enemy submarine "sits 200 miles away and launches a missile at you." </span></span></p><p>"That becomes an air war," he said. "We need to stop it becoming an air war. We need to be able to have the ability to defend against that."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/comparing-russia-most-advanced-military-equipment-nato-hardware-us-defense-2017-1">How Russia's most advanced military equipment stacks up against NATO hardware</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Russia's submarines are showing they can strike deep inside Europe, and they've got the US Navy on edge

Submarines are increasingly lurking in seas around the world, and the US Navy's high-tech Poseidon is there to hunt them

<p>Russia's submarine fleet is one of the most capable in the world, perhaps second only to that of the United States. And it is only getting better.</p><p>Although a holdover from the Cold War, Russia has been steadily investing in and modernizing its fleet in both capabilities and range. Russian President Vladimir Putin has <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">grand plans</a> to modernize the fleet through the purchase of additional submarines coupled along the development and acquisition of new models.</p><p>And Putin's plan has so far worked. Russian submarines are <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-in-atlantic-highest-since-cold-war-2016-2">active again</a> in the North Atlantic at similar levels as the Cold War. And their training and professionalism is suddenly drawing the concern of NATO. In response to these actions, the US is once again <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-to-reopen-submarine-hunting-base-in-iceland-2016-2">opening</a> a Cold War-era submarine hunting base in Iceland. </p><p>Below is an infographic by St. Petersburg, Russia-based designer <a href="https://www.behance.net/gallery/14054495/Military-infographic-posters">Anton Egorov</a> depicting the submarines that Russia currently operates, along with their maximum depth: </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.behance.net/gallery/14054495/Military-infographic-posters">Anton Egorov</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Russia's submarine fleet is divided into three broad categories: diesel-electric powered submarines, nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, and nuclear-powered attack submarines. Each variation has its own unique purpose and is further sub-divided into varying models. </span></p><p>Russia's diesel-electric submarine fleet is the least technologically advanced segment of the fleet and also the cheapest to acquire and maintain. These submarines, which are smaller and slower and have a shorter range than their nuclear counterparts, are limited in their total operational depth and are used for attacking surface ships and merchant vessels. </p><p>Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans on adding</a> an additional six Kilo-class submarines to the Black Sea Fleet, along with 14 to 18 diesel-electric submarines similar to Lada-class subs over the next fifteen years. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borei-class_submarine#mediaviewer/File:K-535_Yuri_Dolgorukiy_at_sea_trials.jpg">Wiki Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">Borei-class submarine Yuri Dolgorukiy during sea trials.</p></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Nuclear-powered ballistic subs form the nuclear deterrent backbone of the Russian fleet. These subs are faster than diesel-electric submarines, larger, and can dive to significantly deeper depths. These subs carry ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. </span></p><p>The final class of submarine in the fleet are nuclear-powered attack subs. These submarines are generally the fastest in the fleet and are usually slightly smaller than ballistic missile subs, although they can usually operate at lower depths. These subs are used to hunt ballistic missile submarines as well as enemy ships. In some cases, the subs can be armed with vertical-launch tubes to target land-based targets. </p><p>Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans</a> to replace its Delta III and Delta IV-class subs with Borei II submarines in the coming years. The Oscar II-class sub will be replaced with the entirely new Yasen submarine class after 2020. </p><p>Of course, continued Russian modernization of its fleet may face some serious issues. Sanctions and the continuing low oil prices are so seriously cutting into Russia's budget to the point that Moscow <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russias-might-sell-state-owned-oil-assets-2016-2">might sell off</a> portions of its state-owned oil companies. </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-saffir-firefighting-robot-2015-2">The US Navy just unveiled a robot that can walk through fire</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="d3bWo2czrYqOAV4OSo5JQzNv3Vp6mFz1" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

This amazing graphic shows all of the Russian Navy's submarines

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy/Mass Comm. Specialist 2nd Class Bobby Siens</span></p><p class="caption">The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman in the Atlantic Ocean, July 8, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>The US and its allies are reassessing their naval operations around Europe and in the Atlantic.</strong></li><li><strong>These changes are driven in large part by intensifying Russian submarine activity.</strong></li><li><strong>But changing capabilities mean NATO may have to look farther north to establish a deterrent.</strong></li></ul><p>Units from the USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group returned home to Norfolk, Virginia, this week, only three months after deploying.</p><p>The Truman's time at sea was only about half as long as typical deployments, and the early return reflects the Pentagon's shift toward "dynamic force employment," a concept touted by <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">Defense</keyword> Secretary Jim Mattis as a way to make the military more responsive to emerging threats.</p><p><span>"The National Defense Strategy directs us to be operationally unpredictable while remaining strategically predictable," US Navy Fleet Forces Commander Adm. Christopher Grady <a href="http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=106358" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said a release</a> announcing the return to port, which he said was "a direct reflection of the dynamic force employment concept and the inherent maneuverability and flexibility of the US Navy."</span></p><p><span>Grady said the carrier group "had an incredibly successful three months in the US 6th Fleet area of responsibility," an area that stretches from pole to pole between the mid-Atlantic and the Indian Ocean.</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_submarine_Severodvinsk">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">The Russian Yasen-class nuclear attack submarine Severodvinsk</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>However, the Truman and its accompanying vessels finished their time at sea much closer to home - in the western Atlantic closer to Canada than to Europe, <a href="https://news.usni.org/2018/07/16/uss-harry-s-truman-now-operating-cold-war-era-submarine-hot-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to USNI News. </span></p><p><span>That area falls under the responsibility of Fleet Forces Command but will soon become the remit of the US Second Fleet, which was reestablished earlier this year <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-reactivating-2nd-fleet-for-atlantic-amid-tensions-with-russia-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">amid growing concern about Russian naval activity</a> in and around the Atlantic Ocean.</span></p><p><span>The cruiser Normandy and destroyers Forrest Sherman and Arleigh Burke are set to return to Norfolk, Va. this week, while the destroyers Bulkeley and Farragut remain at sea, a Navy official told the Virginian-Pilot newspaper.  An official with Fleet Forces Command did not return a request seeking details about what operations these ships have been performing. But it's clear that anti-submarine operations have <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/nato-ships-russian-sub-in-mediterranean-hint-at-changing-naval-warfare-2017-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">become a bigger priority</a> for the US and its allies. </span></p><p><span>The Truman's anti-submarine capabilities <a href="https://news.usni.org/2018/07/16/uss-harry-s-truman-now-operating-cold-war-era-submarine-hot-spot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">are limited</a> to the helicopters it carries, but the strike group did deploy earlier this year with more destroyers than usual. </span></p><p><span>Those ships are outfitted with sophisticated anti-submarine-warfare assets that aren't typically used in the Atlantic, Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and a former submariner, <a href="https://news.usni.org/2018/06/29/carrier-uss-harry-s-truman-operating-in-the-atlantic-as-russian-submarine-activity-is-on-the-rise" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told USNI News in June</a>. Operating in the Atlantic would give carrier strike groups opportunities to carry out high-end exercises with partner forces, he said.</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy/Mass Comm. Specialist 2nd Class Scott Swofford</span></p><p class="caption">An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter from the "Dragon Slayers" of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 11 alongside the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>The North Atlantic become an area of renewed focus for NATO in recent years. Alliance officials <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have said</a> Russian submarine activity in the area is at <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-increasing-around-uk-and-in-north-atlantic-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">levels not seen</a> since the Cold War (though intelligence reports from the era <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-increasing-around-uk-and-in-north-atlantic-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggest</a> that activity is far from Cold War peaks).</span></p><p><span>Russia's submarine fleet is is not nearly as big as its Cold War predecessor, but the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">subs Moscow has added and is working on are more advanced</a>. (NATO navies, too, are smaller than they were during the Cold War.)</span></p><p><span>"The Russians are closing the gap," Magnus Nordenman, director of the Transatlantic Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council, said earlier this year. "And they have departed from their traditional sort of approach - with lots of mass and lots of submarines but of sort of varying quality - and they are taking a page from our playbook, which is go for quality instead."</span></p><p><span>The US and its allies have put more energy and resources into anti-submarine warfare. That includes a new focus on <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-p8a-poseidon-sub-hunting-aircraft-features-sales-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Cold War maritime surveillance network</a> that covered the sea between Greenland, Iceland, and the UK - known as the GIUK Gap. The US Navy has spent several million dollars refurbishing Naval Air Station Keflavik in Iceland to handle the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-p8a-poseidon-sub-hunting-aircraft-features-sales-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advanced P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft</a>, though the Navy <a href="https://www.navytimes.com/news/2018/01/10/restoration-of-us-air-base-in-iceland-does-not-mean-troops-will-follow-navy-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has said</a> those upgrades don't necessarily mean a permanent presence will be reestablished there.</span></p><p><span>Nevertheless, focusing on the GIUK Gap may fall short of the challenge NATO now faces.</span></p><p><span>For much of the Cold War, the Soviet navy lacked land-attack cruise missiles and would have had to leave its "bastion" in the Barents Sea in order to engage NATO forces, which made the GIUK Gap an important choke point at that time, according to Steven Wills, a military historian and former US Navy surface-warfare officer.</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Google Maps</span></p><p class="caption"> The GIUK Gap has long been seen as a key choke point in the North Atlantic. </p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>But with the development of sub-launched missiles - especially the modern Kaliber cruise missile - "Today's Russian Navy can remain within its Barents bastion and still launch accurate attacks against ships in the Norwegian Sea and NATO land targets without leaving these protected waters," <a href="http://cimsec.org/a-new-gap-in-the-high-north-and-forward-defense-against-russian-naval-power/37129" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wills argues in an article</a> for the Center for International Maritime Security, a professional military journal focused on naval strategy.</span></p><p><span>NATO should adopt a deterrent posture like that of the Cold War, Wills says, "but the locus of the action is much further north than Iceland."</span></p><p><span>NATO's decision to reestablish <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-reportedly-is-joking-about-pulling-the-us-out-of-nato-2018-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an Atlantic Command</a>, to be based in Norfolk, is a welcome one, Wills writes, but that headquarters should focus on air and port facilities around the Norwegian and Greenland seas, even forward-deploying to oversee activity there. Surface vessels may need to partner with unmanned assets to cover a greater area as sea ice recedes.</span></p><p><span>Russia's Northern Fleet is based on the Kola Peninsula on the Barents Sea, and a more active NATO naval presence in the area would almost certainly draw protests from Moscow, which has accused the alliance of trying to box in it and its allies in Europe. But a presence in the northern seas is necessary, according to Wills.</span></p><p><span>"The real 'Gap' where NATO must focus its deterrent action is the Greenland, Svalbard, North Cape line at the northern limit of the Norwegian and and Greenland Seas," he writes. "It is again time to consider deterrent action and potential naval warfare in the 'High North.'"</span><span></span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/life-us-navy-submarine-military-training-armed-forces-2016-9">Everything you've ever wanted to know about life on a US Navy submarine</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The US Navy is returning to a Cold War submarine flash point, but the real action may much farther north

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Rubin Design Bureau</span></p><p class="caption">Yury Dolgorukiy on its way to the Russian Northern Fleet, October 15, 2015.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Russia's newest nuclear ballistic missile submarine was officially launched last week.</strong></li><li><strong>The Knyaz Vladimir has an improved suite of electronics and lower sound levels that help make the sub virtually undetectable.</strong></li><li><strong>Russia plans on building four additional Borei II-class submarines.</strong></li></ul><p><br />Russia's newest nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) the "Knyaz Vladimir"  - or "Prince Vladimir" in English - was officially <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/news/russian-navys-first-borey-submarine-ssbn-knyaz-vladimir-floated/">launched</a> last week.</p><p>The submarine is the first version of a second variant of the Borei-class submarine (also known as the Dolgorukiy-class after the name of its first vessel), which will be known as the Borei II-class. It was launched during a float out ceremony at the Sevmash Shipyards in Severodvinsk in northern Russia.</p><p>The 558 ft long and 44 ft wide submarine is <a href="http://tass.com/defense/976020">different</a> from its three predecessors. The Knyaz Vladimir has an improved suite of electronics, a deeper dive capability (400 metres), improved living quarters, and lower sound levels that help make the sub virtually undetectable.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Rubin Design Bureau</span></p><p class="caption">Yury Dolgorukiy, the lead vessel of the Borei-class submarine</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>The biggest difference in the Knyaz Vladimir is its ability to launch four additional RSM-56 Bulava ballistic missiles, each capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads.</p><p>As <a href="https://thediplomat.com/authors/franz-stefan-gady/">Franz-Stefan Gady</a> at The Diplomat <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2017/10/russia-to-launch-its-most-powerful-ballistic-missile-sub-in-november/">points out</a>, this means that the Knyaz Vladimir "will be capable of launching 96-200 hypersonic, independently maneuverable warheads, yielding 100-150 kilotons apiece," meaning each warhead alone is ten times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.</p><p>That is enough to devastate the entire eastern seaboard of the United States - and then some. All of from just one submarine.</p><p>While Knyaz Vladimir is expected to fully integrate with the Russian navy next year, Russia plans on building four additional Borei II-class submarines, with the last one expected to be completed in 2025. That will bring the total number of Borei and Borei II-class submarines to eight.</p><p>Two of the three existing Borei-class submarines, Alexander Nevsky and Vladimir Monomakh, are deployed in Russia's <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2016/10/russias-pacific-fleet-nuclear-sub-test-fires-intercontinental-ballistic-missile/">increasingly active</a> Pacific Fleet; while the other sub, Yuri Dolgoruky, is deployed with Russia's Northern Fleet.</p><p>The Knyaz Vladimir is named after Grand Prince Vladimir, also known as Vladimir the Great, who was responsible for Christianizing the Kievan Rus, a moment many Russians <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/04/vladimir-great-statue-unveiled-putin-moscow">consider</a> to be the founding of their nation.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Wikimedia Commons</span></p><p class="caption">Yury Dolgorukiy on sea trials</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><h2>Russia's submarine activity shows signs of increasing</h2><p>Russia is currently in the process of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/21/world/europe/russia-bolsters-submarine-fleet-and-tensions-with-us-rise.html">modernizing</a> its submarine fleet, which has suffered from years of neglect due to the massive costs associated with SSBNs. While Russia has a number of nuclear submarines still in active service, like the Oscar, Delta III, and the famous Typhoon class- submarines, the Borei II-class submarines are expected to be the backbone of Russia's SSBN fleet.</p><p>Already, Russia's submarine activity shows signs of increasing. In 2015, a admiral said that Russia's submarine fleet <a href="https://news.usni.org/2015/03/19/russian-navy-chief-submarine-patrols-up-50-percent-over-last-year">intensified</a> its patrols by almost 50%. A year later, it was reported that Russia's subs in the Northern Fleet <a href="http://www.matthewaid.com/post/141539776591/russia-confirms-higher-level-of-submarine-patrol">increased</a> their patrol time by half, and just last March, Admiral Vladimir Korolev, the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, <a href="https://www.rt.com/news/383025-russia-submarine-fleet-increase/">announced</a> that Russia's submarines had "returned to the level we had before the post-Soviet era."</p><p>Russia is also <a href="http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/russia-already-developing-new-fifth-generation-submarines-13167">building</a> fifth-generation nuclear attack submarines, known as the Yasen-class. One of these subs, the Severodvinsk, is already in service with the Northern Fleet.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Rubin Design Bureau</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Last July, Russian President Vladimir Putin <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/what-putin-wants-russias-navy-639850">signed</a> off on a strategy that singled the US out as a direct threat, saying that it wanted to "dominate the oceans, including in the Arctic."</p><p>"The Russian Federation continues to retain its status as a great naval state, whose naval potential ensures the defensive of its national interests in any part of the World Ocean," the strategy declared. </p><p>Though the US Navy has far more submarines in active service both in SSBN's and attack submarines, the Russian Navy's recent moves and its newest submarine plans, show a sign of changing strategy, with a new focus placed on challenging the US Navy's dominance - particularly underwater. </p><p class="tagline"></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/lockheed-martin-air-force-legendary-c-5-plane-transport-submarine-2016-12">The Air Force's legendary C-5 plane is so enormous it can transport a submarine</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Russia launched a powerful new submarine named after 'Vladimir the Great' - and it's just getting started

<p>Russia's submarine fleet is one of the most capable in the world, perhaps second only to that of the United States.</p>
<p>The submarine fleet is mostly a holdover from the days of the Cold War. Nuclear-armed Soviet and US submarines would pursue each other across the world's oceans and act as second-strike options in the event of all-out nuclear war. </p>
<p>Although Russia's submarine fleet had aged and shrunk since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Russian President Vladimir Putin has <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">grand plans</a> to modernize the fleet through the purchase of additional submarines coupled along the development and acquisition of new models.</p>
<p>Below is an infographic by St. Petersburg, Russia-based designer <a href="https://www.behance.net/gallery/14054495/Military-infographic-posters">Anton Egorov</a> depicting the submarines that Russia currently operates, along with their maximum depth: </p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Russia's submarine fleet is divided into three broad categories: diesel-electric powered submarines, nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, and nuclear-powered attack submarines. Each variation has its own unique purpose and is further sub-divided into varying models. </span></p>
<p>Russia's diesel-electric submarine fleet is the least technologically advanced segment of the fleet and also the cheapest to acquire and maintain. These submarines, which are smaller and slower and have a shorter range than their nuclear counterparts, are limited in their total operational depth and are used for attacking surface ships and merchant vessels. </p>
<p>Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans on adding</a> an additional six Kilo-class submarines to the Black Sea Fleet, along with 14 to 18 diesel-electric submarines similar to Lada-class subs over the next fifteen years. </p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Nuclear-powered ballistic subs form the nuclear deterrent backbone of the Russian fleet. These subs are faster than diesel-electric submarines, larger, and can dive to significantly deeper depths. These subs carry ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. </span></p>
<p>The final class of submarine in the fleet are nuclear-powered attack subs. These submarines are generally the fastest in the fleet and are usually slightly smaller than ballistic missile subs, although they can usually operate at lower depths. These subs are used to hunt ballistic missile submarines as well as enemy ships. In some cases, the subs can be armed with vertical-launch tubes to target land-based targets. </p>
<p>Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans</a> to replace its Delta III and Delta IV-class subs with Borei II submarines in the coming years. The Oscar II-class sub will be replaced with the entirely new Yasen submarine class after 2020. </p>

This chart shows all of the submarines currently in the Russian Navy

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Russia has taken another major step towards modernizing its navy.</p><p>The Russian <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">defense</keyword> company Admiralty Shipyards launched its second diesel-electric Varshavyanka-class submarine this week.</p><p>Called Krasnodar, the company claims that the vessel will be "the quietest submarine in the world," Zachary Keck <a href="http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/russia-launches-quietest-submarine-the-world-12765">reports</a> for The National Interest. </p><p>Krasnodar is part of a plan to update Russia's submarine fleet. <a href="http://rt.com/news/168568-kilo-submarine-black-sea/">According</a> to Russia Today, the submarine is the "second Varshavyanka submarine out of six planned for the Black Sea Fleet by the end of 2016." </p><p>The Varshavyanka-class is an <a href="http://www.naval-technology.com/news/newsrussia-navys-first-varshavyanka-class-stealth-submarine-launched-4139645">update</a> to Russia's current Kilo-class submarine. Although <span>Varshavyanka-class</span> submarines can not dive as deep or stay submerged underwater as long as nuclear submarines, they are nearly impossible to detect acoustically.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="Anton Egorov" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54d4e9356da811047f207c1f-960/6d5a163abc705bbd0c5f1c86ac41b4ab.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>In addition to the <span>Varshavyanka-class, Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans on adding</a><span> an additional 14 to 18 diesel-electric submarines similar to Lada-class subs over the next 15 years. </span></span></p><p><span><span><span>Russia also </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans</a><span> to replace its Delta III and Delta IV-class subs with Borei II submarines in the coming years. The Oscar II-class sub will be replaced with the entirely new Yasen submarine class after 2020. </span></span><span><br /></span></span></p><p> </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/secret-world-war-two-era-basement-inside-grand-central-trains-nazis-2015-3">We went inside a secret basement under Grand Central that was one of the biggest World War II targets</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="RtaTN5czph8JWBuLRWgPH0bveNBLU3oi" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

The Kremlin just launched what it claims is the 'quietest submarine in the world'

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Russia is making moves to revive and increase the size and scope of its Black Sea submarine fleet, the Russian Ministry of <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">Defense</keyword> <a href="http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12045326@egNews">stated</a>. </p><p>Russian Navy Admiral Viktor Chirkov stated during a meeting with the Main Naval Command in Saint Petersburg on Monday that he believes that the submarine fleet will be "revived" and ready for action by 2016.</p><p>The submarines will be based at the Novorossiysk port on the Russian mainland across from the Crimean peninsula.</p><p>The submarine fleet will be augmented by the inclusion of six new diesel-electric submarines that Russia has been phasing into service since 2014. </p><p>"The construction of 6 diesel-electrical submarines (project 636) for the Black Sea Fleet is under the control of the Main Navy Command. 'Novorossiysk' and 'Rostov-on-Don' submarines were put into service in 2014," Chirkov <a href="http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12045326@egNews">said</a>. "'Krasnodar' submarine will join the Navy by the end of 2015."</p><p>Three other submarines will additionally be added to the fleet by the end of 2016. The submarines of project 636 have been designed to excel at warfare in shallower water while being arguably the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kremlin-launched-quietest-submarine-in-the-world-2015-4">quietest submarines</a> in the world. </p><p>"The formation will consist of a group of 636 submarines, which have a large sea endurance, modern weapon systems, effective radio and navigational systems," Chirkov <a href="http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12045326@egNews">said</a>. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>The project 636 submarines are Varshavyanka-class vessels, which are upgraded versions of Russia's previous Kilo-class submarines. Although Varshavyanka-class submarines can not dive as deep or stay submerged underwater as long as nuclear submarines, they are nearly impossible to detect acoustically.</p><p>Primarily, the Varshavyanka-class submarines will be used for anti-shipping and anti-submarine warfare in shallower water. <a href="http://www.naval-technology.com/news/newsrussia-navys-first-varshavyanka-class-stealth-submarine-launched-4139645">According</a> to Naval Technology, the submarines can cruise for a range of 400 miles, can patrol for 45 days, and carry surface-to-air missiles and torpedoes.</p><p>The mixture of weaponry onboard the submarines allow the vessels to hypothetically strike both a mixture of land, sea, and underwater targets.  </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>The revival of the Black Sea fleet coincides with Russia's general drive to modernize its submarine assets as a whole. In addition to the Black Sea, Moscow <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans on adding</a> an additional 14 to 18 diesel-electric submarines similar to Lada-class subs over the next 15 years throughout the Russian fleets. </p><p>The Kremlin also <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-russias-grandiose-plans-for-upgrading-their-navy-2015-1">plans</a> to replace its Delta III and Delta IV-class subs with Borei II submarines in the coming years. The Oscar II-class sub will be replaced with the entirely new Yasen submarine class after 2020. </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/21st-century-airplane-innovation-military-2015-6">11 game-changing military planes from the last 15 years</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="l5ZzBwdTrzVKpAhnoOODcBc1RJTXkNqa" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Russia's Black Sea submarine fleet is getting a serious upgrade

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Russia fired a Zircon hypersonic cruise missile for the first time in Ukraine, experts say.</li><li>The director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute said it found evidence from a recent attack.</li></ul><p>Russia has used a Zircon hypersonic cruise missile for the first time in Ukraine, according to experts.</p><p>Oleksandr Ruvin, the director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise, said in a <a target="_blank" href="https://t.me/OleksandrRuvin/143"><u>Telegram post</u></a> on Monday that staff at the institute had found identifying markings among the missiles launched in an attack last Wednesday.</p><p>"This is evidenced by the markings on parts and fragments, the identification of components and parts, and the features of the relevant type of weapon," Ruvin wrote, per a <a target="_blank" href="https://kyivindependent.com/russia-used-zircon-hypersonic-missile-for-first-time-experts-say/"><u>translation</u></a> by the Kyiv Independent.</p><p>He said the missile wreckage had characteristics unique to a 3M22 Zircon missile, including the inscription "3L22" engraved on some fragments, as well as the number 26 on the bolts holding the steering systems.</p><p>Ruvin shared a video of the debris to back up his claim.</p><p>The attack killed at least five people and injured more than 50 others, the report said.</p><p>The Zircon missile, also spelled Tsirkon, is part of a hypersonic program that Russia has been working on in recent years, per a <a target="_blank" href="https://sgp.fas.org/crs/weapons/R45811.pdf"><u>report</u></a> by the Congressional Research Service. </p><p>The missile is launched from a ship and can reach speeds of Mach 6 to Mach 8, or between about 4,500 and 6,000 mph, the CRS report said. This means it can fly at up to eight times the speed of sound.</p><p>Russian officials <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-putin-invincible-zircon-hypersonic-missile-speed-accuracy-limitations-2023-2"><u>have said</u></a> it can actually travel at Mach 9, or about 6,900 mph.</p><p>Russian President Vladimir Putin has called weapons like the Zircon "invincible" and impossible to defend against.</p><div type="image" title="In this image taken from video released by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Saturday, May 28, 2022, a new Zircon hypersonic cruise missile is launched by the frigate Admiral Gorshkov of the Russian navy from the Barents Sea." height="3668" width="6000" msid="107664279" hostid="261"></div><p>According to Russian state-owned media, it's not the first time Russia has fired the missile.</p><p>Zircon missiles were successfully launched in January, October, and December 2020, and May 2022, as well as from a Yasen-class submarine in October 2021, the CRS said, citing <a target="_blank" href="https://tass.com/defense/1124339"><u>a TASS report</u></a>.</p><p>Russia also <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/putin-sending-warship-into-atlantic-armed-with-hypersonic-missiles-2023-1"><u>deployed</u></a> the missile on a frigate in January 2023.</p><p>At the time, Putin <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/putin-sending-warship-into-atlantic-armed-with-hypersonic-missiles-2023-1"><u>said</u></a> the weapon had "no analogues in any country in the world.”</p><p>The capabilities of the missile should not be overstated, Business Insider’s Michael Peck <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-putin-invincible-zircon-hypersonic-missile-speed-accuracy-limitations-2023-2"><u>reported</u></a> last year.</p><p>When an object travels at Mach 5 or faster, it ionizes the air around it and creates a plasma sheath that obstructs radar signals, which is an issue when approaching moving targets, he wrote.</p><p>No Black Sea vessel is known to carry the missiles, raising questions about where they could be launched from, the UK's Ministry of Defence said in an <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/1757694021844009192?s=20">intelligence update</a> on Wednesday.</p><p>The UK MOD said a Russian K-300 coastal defense system had likely been modified to fire them. It added that if the missiles' use is confirmed it would pose a "significant challenge" to Ukrainian air defenses, due to its speed and maneuverability.</p><p>But at the same time, though the missile debris is still being analyzed, researchers at the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise said the weapon "does not meet the tactical and technical characteristics claimed" by Russia, per a <a target="_blank" href="https://kyivindependent.com/russia-used-zircon-hypersonic-missile-for-first-time-experts-say/"><u>translation</u></a> by the Kyiv Independent.</p>

Russia fired Putin's 'invincible' hypersonic Zircon missile for the first time in Ukraine, experts say

<ul class="summary-list"><li>US military leaders have warned that Russia's Severodvinsk-class subs are operating near US coasts.</li><li>Severodvinsk-class subs have a mix of stealth and striking power that worries US and NATO navies.</li></ul><p>A year of renewed fighting in Ukraine has depleted and embarrassed Russia's air, ground, and naval forces, but one component of Russia's otherwise struggling military — its submarines — still worries US commanders.</p><p>Submarines are <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-future-looks-bleak-for-russias-struggling-navy-2022-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a relative bright spot</a> in Russia's recent <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-navy-betting-big-on-new-smaller-warships-with-missiles-2021-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">naval modernization</a> efforts, especially the Severodvinsk-class subs that US officials say are hard to detect and capable of striking important targets in Europe and the US.</p><p>Despite the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-ships-head-south-as-flagship-moskva-battles-extensive-fire-2022-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">high-profile loss of the guided-missile destroyer Moskva</a>, the Black Sea Fleet flagship, in April, Russia's navy remains "largely intact" and continues "to do what we've always seen" it do, Rear Adm. Michael Studeman, commander of the Office of Naval Intelligence, said at an Intelligence and National Security Alliance event on January 11.</p><p>"But they have more advanced capabilities with their Severodvinsk SSGN. There are three of those out there now and they'll be building more," Studeman said, using an acronym referring to nuclear-powered guided-missile submarines.</p><p>Russia plans to build nine Severodvinsk-class subs, which it calls the Yasen class, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-yasen-class-subs-land-attack-missiles-worry-nato-militaries-2022-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">may add more in the future</a>. Those subs are "very, very advanced," have "multi-mission capabilities," and are increasingly active, Studeman said.</p><div type="image" title="Russian Navy K-560 Severodvinsk submarine sailors" height="1331" width="2000" msid="97095452" hostid="261" sizebytes="245394"></div><p>"They have started doing patrols in the Atlantic, holding the United States at risk in some of their patrol areas, and they recently moved one <a href="https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/security/2022/09/nuclear-subs-made-trans-arctic-under-ice-transfer-barents-pacific" target="_blank" rel="noopener">into the Pacific</a>," Studeman added. "So there'll be a dual-flank challenge for the United States in trying to track and hold accountable where those submarines are and what they're doing."</p><p>Studeman's comments echoed those of US Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck, the head of US Northern Command and NORAD, who in October warned about the increasing presence of Severodvinsk-class subs off of US coasts.</p><p>"What has been an episodic threat to the homeland, typically in the fall and through the winter timeframe, will become a persistent, proximate threat," VanHerck said at the Association of the US Army Conference on October 11.</p><p>VanHerck has said in the past that Severodvinsk-class subs are a top concern, describing them as "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russias-newest-subs-on-par-us-top-us-commanders-say-2021-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on par with</a>" US submarines.</p><p>Those subs' increasing activity in the Atlantic and the Pacific means they "will be a persistent, proximate threat capable of carrying a significant number of land-attack cruise missiles that can threaten our homeland today," VanHerck said.</p><h2>'Right out of the Russian playbook'</h2><div type="image" title="Russia submarine Arctic" height="921" width="1400" msid="97095454" hostid="261" sizebytes="93406"></div><p>Construction of the first Severodvinsk-class sub, also called Severodvinsk, began in 1993. It entered service in late 2013. The second and third subs, Kazan and Novosibirsk, have since entered service and the fourth, Krasnoyarsk, is undergoing sea trials.</p><p>In addition to nuclear propulsion, Severodvinsk-class subs have advanced quieting technology and are built with low-magnetic steel, making them harder to detect. They are armed with torpedoes as well as anti-ship and land-attack cruise missiles that can be fired vertically.</p><p>The subs built after Severodvinsk are similarly armed but have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-northern-fleet-new-class-of-subs-worry-us-navy-2021-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a number of upgrades</a>, including new quieting technology and a quieter nuclear reactor.</p><p>The ability to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-nato-train-to-counter-russian-submarines-missile-threat-2020-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">attack targets on land with cruise missiles</a> is a relatively new one for Russian submarines. They demonstrated it in the mid-2010s by firing Kalibr cruise missiles at ISIS targets in Syria, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/27/world/europe/russia-military-putin-ukraine.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">surprising</a> some US officials.</p><p>Those capabilities have inspired <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-yasen-class-subs-land-attack-missiles-worry-nato-militaries-2022-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">admiration and worry among Western officials</a>. Their main concern is Severodvinsk-class subs could lurk off their coasts and attack vital infrastructure, such as ports and airfields needed for resupply and reinforcement, with cruise missiles.</p><div type="image" title="Russian landing ship attack burning Berdyansk Ukraine" height="919" width="1225" msid="97095457" hostid="261" sizebytes="89806"></div><p>In the "threatening period" immediately before a conflict, Russia would deploy much of its naval power closer to its shores, but in the "far seas," including most of the Atlantic Ocean, Moscow would make "much more limited use of nuclear-powered submarines" because it lacks the resources to operate them there effectively, according to Michael Petersen, director of the Russia Maritime Studies Institute at the US Naval War College.</p><p>"When it comes to long-range precision-strike warfare, Russia's logistics and sustainment and striking power decrease with distance," Petersen said during <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t05p9YTFjYQ&amp;ab_channel=MSCConference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a presentation</a> in August.</p><p>But some developments in Ukraine appear to validate Russia's ambitions — and NATO's concerns.</p><p>Petersen said Russian reports suggest that Kalibr missiles have "proven their worth" to Russian commanders, who have been "relying heavily" on them to strike important targets.</p><p>A Ukrainian attack on Russian forces also appears to have bolstered Russian thinking about what Petersen called "targeting maritime resupply at the pier" — a scenario for which <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-training-for-all-domain-fight-atlantic-during-nato-exercise-2021-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NATO navies have renewed their training</a>.</p><p>In March, a Ukrainian missile struck a Russian landing ship docked in Berdyansk. Ukraine had used intelligence about the ship's location to "strike that vessel, that single vessel, with a precision-strike munition," Petersen said. "That is exactly right out of the Russian playbook, and that is something I think that the Russians, in a sort of weird and perverse way, were able to learn as something that they can use to their advantage in the future."</p>

Russia's troops are tied down in Ukraine, but some of its best subs are still holding the US 'at risk,' top US commanders say

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Putin has touted Russian hypersonic weapons like the Zircon missile as impossible to defend against.</li><li>Zircon in particular is powerful but there are limits on what it can do, a Western expert says.</li></ul><p>Russia's Zircon hypersonic missile can do two things: fly at almost 7,000 mph, which makes it very hard to shoot down, or hit a moving ship. But it can't do both.</p><p>That's the conclusion of a British expert who says that the Zircon is a powerful weapon with major limitations.</p><p>"The operational deployment of the Zircon is an important development, but one whose significance should not be exaggerated," <a href="https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/zircon-how-much-threat-does-russias-hypersonic-missile-pose" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to Sidharth Kaushal</a>, a naval warfare expert at the Royal United Services Institute, a British defense think tank.</p><p>President Vladimir Putin has touted Russia's hypersonic weapons as being "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.co.za/south-africa-may-have-a-zircon-problem-during-operation-mosi-exercise-with-russia-2023-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">invincible</a>." Russian officials claim the <a href="https://missiledefenseadvocacy.org/missile-threat-and-proliferation/todays-missile-threat/russia/3m22-zircon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3M22 Zircon</a> can travel at Mach 9, or about 6,900 mph, which may be too fast for current tactical anti-missile defenses.</p><p>But Putin's rhetoric can't change the laws of physics. The problem is that objects traveling at hypersonic speeds — Mach 5 and beyond — ionize the air around them, creating a sheath of plasma around the object that blocks radar signals.</p><p>Yet radar is precisely how many guided missiles home in on their targets. Once the missile arrives near a designated point, an active radar seeker in the nose switches on, scans the area, and locks on target. Similar problems affect other high-speed missiles, like <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-aircraft-carriers-arent-little-teacups-their-captains-say-2022-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China's anti-ship ballistic missiles</a>.</p><div type="image" title="Putin Missile" height="1547" width="2200" msid="98134684" hostid="261" sizebytes="49720"></div><p>"Because the missile's plasma layer precludes the use of active radar and other onboard sensors to track a target vessel in the terminal phase, the missile likely has to slow down to well short of hypersonic speeds in order to track mobile targets," Kaushal wrote.</p><p>Against targets that are fixed, like buildings on land, it's not necessary to slow down. But when hunting ships, the Zircon would probably have to slow down to supersonic speed to use its radar. If that's the case, then as it nears the target, the Zircon would not be moving any faster than earlier Russian anti-ship missiles such as the <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/ss-n-26/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">P-800 Oniks</a>, which has a speed of about Mach 2.5, or 1,900 mph.</p><p>Supersonic missiles can be intercepted by shipboard defenses such as the <a href="https://missiledefenseadvocacy.org/defense-systems/searam-anti-ship-missile-defense-system/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">US Navy's SeaRAM gun/missile system</a>.</p><p>In addition, when the Zircon is launched, a rocket boosts it to high altitude and supersonic speed, which is necessary for the Zircon's scramjet engine to kick in and reach hypersonic velocity. The disadvantage is that unlike supersonic anti-ship missiles that can skim just above the water to avoid radar detection, the Zircon will have to stay at an altitude of about 12 miles until it gets relatively close to the target. Flying higher for longer makes it more visible to radar.</p><p>"The missile can either be hypersonic or low observable but not both in tandem," wrote Kaushal.</p><p>The Zircon should not be underestimated. A destroyer, for example, might not detect a missile until it gets to within about 15 miles, according to Kaushal. "From this point, assuming the missile is a Zircon flying at speeds of Mach 5–6, the vessel would have 15 seconds to react."</p><p>Yet Kaushal is skeptical about Russian claims that the Zircon is really operational.</p><div type="image" title="Russia navy frigate Zircon hypersonic missile SS-N-33" height="667" width="890" msid="98134687" hostid="261" sizebytes="7092"></div><p>The weapon was developed remarkably quickly compared to previous Russian missiles. "Furthermore, there appear to be no reported test failures, which is irregular for a new missile, especially one as complex as a hypersonic cruise missile," Kaushal noted.</p><p>The Zircon has a reported range of about 621 miles, but this is contingent on the missile being accurately guided toward the target zone: Its on-board radar can only scan a limited area, and even an aircraft carrier is a small object to spot in a big ocean. Russia also has limited maritime surveillance and detection capabilities <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-yasen-class-cruise-missile-submarines-worry-us-commanders-2023-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">beyond its coastal waters</a>.</p><p>"While not much is known about the navigation system of the Zircon, the risk of plasma blackout would seem to necessitate very precise inertial guidance" as guidance from GPS or from its Russian counterpart, GLONASS, "cannot be reliably assumed," Kaushal told Insider.</p><p>Nonetheless, the Zircon may end up giving many Russian warships a hypersonic attack capability. The weapon is about 26 feet to 32 feet long, meaning it is small enough to be fitted onto smaller warships such as <a href="https://navyrecognition.com/index.php/naval-news/naval-news-archive/2023/january/12748-russia-navy-frigate-admiral-gorshkov-fires-zircon-hypersonic-missile-in-atlantic.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Admiral Gorshkov-class frigates</a> and submarines like the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-yasen-class-cruise-missile-submarines-worry-us-commanders-2023-1">Yasen-class boats that worry NATO commanders</a>.</p><p>"It is pretty big even by cruise-missile standards," Kaushal told Insider. "That said, most vessels in the Russian fleet are being equipped to carry cruise missiles, so that is definitely a design principle for even the smaller elements of the fleet."</p><p><em>Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master's in political science. Follow him on <a href="https://www.twitter.com/@mipeck1" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://affiliate.insider.com/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fmipeck%2F&amp;amazonTrackingID=null&amp;site=bi&amp;vikingID=63a0ec69c4cc6f36ff0dbbd6&amp;platform=browser&amp;sc=false&amp;disabled=false&amp;sessionID=1666393597540n9zaize3&amp;postID=63ece2f5507e5b6539124386" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noindex noopener sponsored">LinkedIn</a>.</em></p>

Putin's 'invincible' missile has a very common problem

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Marit Hommedal/NTB Scanpix</span></p><p class="caption">A Dutch helicopter participates in NATO's Dynamic Mongoose anti-submarine exercise in the North Sea off the coast of Norway, May 4, 2015.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>NATO navies are increasingly worried about Russian submarines.</strong></li><li><strong>That concern has led to renewed focus on anti-submarine warfare.</strong></li><li><strong>But some of those navies have neglected their ASW capabilities, meaning they have to play catch-up over the past several years.</strong></li></ul><p>US and European officials have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned repeatedly in recent years</a> that more sophisticated and more active Russian submarines pose a growing threat, and NATO countries are taking steps to counter that perceived challenge.</p><p>Adm. James Foggo, head of US Navy forces in Europe and Africa, has said that a "<a href="https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2016-06/fourth-battle-atlantic" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fourth battle of the Atlantic</a>" - which comes after the naval warfare of World War I, World War II, and the Cold War - is already being fought, and it ranges far beyond the waters of the Atlantic.</p><p><span>"I've used the term in some of my writings that we are in a 'fourth battle of the Atlantic' right now, and that's not just the Atlantic," Foggo said on the first edition of his podcast, "<a href="https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=106903" target="_blank" rel="noopener">On the Horizon</a>," published at the end of August. </span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy/Mass Comm. Specialist 3rd Class M. Jang</span></p><p class="caption">Adm. James Foggo, head of US Naval Forces Europe-Africa, meets officers from the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook in Spain, January 12, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>"That's all those bodies of water I talked about, the Arctic, the Baltic, the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, and the approaches to the Straits of Gibraltar and the GIUK gap, and the North Atlantic," he added, referring to waters between Greenland, Iceland, and the UK that were <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-active-in-north-atlantic-but-russia-sub-activity-may-be-in-arctic-2018-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a focal point for submarine activity</a> during the Cold War.</span></p><p><span>While some intelligence estimates from the Cold war indicate that current Russian sub activity is still <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-increasing-around-uk-and-in-north-atlantic-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">well below peaks</a> reached during that time, US and European officials <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have been expressing concern</a> for the past several years.</span></p><p><span>"The activity in submarine warfare has increased significantly since the first time I came back to Europe and since the Cold War," said Foggo, who previously commanded the Navy's 6th Fleet. "</span><span>The Russian Federation navy has continued to pump rubles into the undersea domain, and they have a very effective submarine force."</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Google Maps</span></p><p class="caption">The GIUK Gap has long been seen as a key chokepoint between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Oceans.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>That force's readiness has also improved to the point where the Russian navy can keep some of them deployed most of the time.</span></p><p><span>US Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told lawmakers earlier this year</a> that Moscow has "really stepped on the gas," with its subs, "both in technology and in ... the amount of time that they're spending abroad."</span></p><p><span>Russia's newest class of submarines, Yasen-class subs, have <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/americas-virginia-class-submarine-vs-russias-lethal-yasen-17892" target="_blank" rel="noopener">drawn comparisons</a> to the US Navy's best subs, and Moscow matches that technical progress with the geographic advantage of being able to deploy from bases on the Barents, Baltic, and Black seas.</span></p><p><span>Some of Russia's Kilo-class subs, which are newer, <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-kilo-class-submarine-why-russias-enemies-fear-the-black-18140" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more advanced</a> diesel-electric boats, are able to launch Kalibr cruise missiles from those areas and reach "any of the capitals of Europe," Foggo said. </span></p><p><span>But, he added, the best way to track these boats is not just with other submarines.</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_submarine_Severodvinsk">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">The Russian Yasen-class nuclear-attack sub Severodvinsk.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>While Foggo was a planner at the Pentagon, Adm. Jonathan Greenert, then the Navy's chief of operations, "</span><span>would often say, 'Hey, look, the best way to find another submarine is not necessarily with another submarine. That's like a needle in a haystack,'" Foggo said.</span></p><p><span>A more effective approach draws on the submarine, surface, and air assets to put a full-court press on rival subs. </span></p><p><span>Anti-submarine warfare "is a combined-arms operation, and let no one forget that," Foggo added, saying that it involved all the US Navy Europe and Africa's assets as well as those of the 6th Fleet, which is responsible for the eastern half of the Atlantic from the Arctic to the Horn of Africa.</span></p><p><span>NATO navies, and many other navies around the world, have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-p8a-poseidon-sub-hunting-aircraft-features-sales-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">increased their attention</a> to anti-submarine-warfare capabilities in recent years, adding improved technology and spending more time practicing. One sign of that focus has been <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-requests-more-sonobuoys-amid-concerns-about-russian-subs-2018-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the growing market for sonobuoys</a>, which are used to hunt targets underwater.</span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy/Chief Mass Comm. Specialist Keith DeVinney</span></p><p class="caption">Naval Aircrewman (Operator) 2nd Class Karl Shinn loads a sonobuoy on a P-8A Poseidon, April 10, 2014.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span>In early 2017, US Navy ships deployed in the eastern Mediterranean engaged in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nato-ships-russian-sub-in-mediterranean-hint-at-changing-naval-warfare-2017-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the tricky game of tracking the Krasnodar</a>, a Russian attack sub whose noise-reducing capability earned it the nickname "The Black Hole."</span></p><p><span>Sailors in the USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group were tasked with following the elusive Krasnodar, despite having little formal training in anti-submarine operations.</span></p><p><span>"It is an indication of the changing dynamic in the world that a skill set, maybe we didn't spend a lot of time on in the last 15 years, is coming back," Capt. Jim McCall, commander of the air wing on the USS Bush, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-russian-ghost-submarine-its-u-s-pursuers-and-a-deadly-new-cold-war-1508509841" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Wall Street Journal at the time.</span></p><p><span>Cmdr. Edward Fossati, commander of the Bush strike group's sub-hunting helicopters, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-russian-ghost-submarine-its-u-s-pursuers-and-a-deadly-new-cold-war-1508509841" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told The Journal</a> that improved tracking abilities had helped keep things even with Russian subs' improved ability to avoid detection.</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Marit Hommedal/NTB Scanpix</span></p><p class="caption">US sailors aboard the USS Vicksburg take part in NATO's Dynamic Mongoose anti-submarine exercise in the North Sea off the coast of Norway, May 4, 2015.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p>But the Navy has had to keep pace in what Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer has <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-russian-ghost-submarine-its-u-s-pursuers-and-a-deadly-new-cold-war-1508509841" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> "a constant foot race."</p><p>Navy surface forces let their focus on ASW "wane considerably" in the years after the Cold War, Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, said in an interview earlier this year.</p><p><span>"Up until a few years ago, their ASW systems were not modernized to deal with new Russian and Chinese subs," said Clark, a former submariner, but the Navy has added new, improved gear, like processors and towed arrays, that have increased their capabilities. </span></p><p><span>"Surface ships are able to get back into the ASW business," Clark said.</span><span></span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/life-us-navy-submarine-military-training-armed-forces-2016-9">Everything you've ever wanted to know about life on a US Navy submarine</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The Navy thinks Russian subs are a growing threat to Europe, and it's mounting a full-court press to counter them

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_submarine_Severodvinsk">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">The Russian Yasen-class nuclear-attack submarine Severodvinsk</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Western officials are increasingly concerned about Russian sub activity.</strong></li><li><strong>Part of that concern is about Russian subs interfering with undersea cables that support telecommunications.</strong></li><li><strong>US sanctions announced Monday target Russian firms linked to undersea spying efforts.</strong></li></ul><p>Russia has been investing heavily in its submarine fleet over the past decade and a half, restocking its fleet with more sophisticated and more capable boats that are more active than at any time since the Cold War.</p><p>That activity has worried Western officials, who have particular concern for what those subs might be doing around the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-increased-naval-activity-threatening-undersea-cables-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">undersea cables that link</a> the US, Europe, and countries around the world, carrying 95% of communications and over $10 trillion in daily transactions.</p><p>Now the US government is targeting that undersea capability by putting sanctions on Russian firms and individuals that work with the country's powerful FSB, the security and intelligence agency <a href="https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/12/29/fact-sheet-actions-response-russian-malicious-cyber-activity-and" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sanctioned in 2016</a> for interfering in the US election that year.</p><p><span>The US is pursuing "an ongoing effort to counter malicious actors working at the behest of the Russian Federation and its military and intelligence units to increase Russia's offensive cyber capabilities," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a <a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm0410" target="_blank" rel="noopener">release</a>. "The entities designated today have directly contributed to improving Russia's cyber and underwater capabilities through their work with the FSB."</span></p><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Telegeography</span></p><p class="caption">Europe's network of submerged cables in detail.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>The Treasury said the sanctions were in response to "malign and destabilizing cyber activities," like 2017's <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/russian-military-was-behind-notpetya-cyberattack-in-ukraine-cia-concludes/2018/01/12/048d8506-f7ca-11e7-b34a-b85626af34ef_story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NotPetya</a> cyberattack and cyber intrusions of the US energy grid, which could allow future attacks.</span></p><p><span>Among the firms sanctioned on Monday was Divetechnoservices, which, since 2007, "has procured a variety of underwater equipment and diving systems for Russian government agencies, to include the FSB," the Treasury Department said.</span></p><p><span>"Further, in 2011, Divetechnoservices was awarded a contract to procure a submersible craft valued at $1.5 million for the FSB," according to the release.</span></p><h2><span>'The 21st-century, underwater equivalent'</span></h2><p><span>Undersea espionage is not new. In 1972, specially equipped US submarines tapped a Soviet communications line off Russia's Pacific coast <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/operation-ivy-bells-2013-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as part of Operation Ivy Bells</a>, which remained secret until information about it was leaked to the Soviets in the early 1980s.</span></p><p><span>One of the subs that took part, the now retired USS Parche, is the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-most-decorated-warship-sub-uss-parche-used-for-spy-missions-2018-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most decorated ship in the Navy</a>, though most of its missions remain secret. The Navy currently operates the USS Jimmy Carter, an advanced Seawolf-class sub that's believed to be <a href="http://cryptome.org/nsa-fibertap.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">modified</a> to tap undersea cables.</span></p><p>"Just as the Russians have specialized submarines for this, we do too," Magnus Nordenman, the director the Transatlantic Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council, said in an interview earlier this year, citing the Carter specifically. "And it's certainly something that we did during the Cold War too."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>US Navy/Lt. Cmdr. Michael Smith</span></p><p class="caption">Officers and crew on the Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Jimmy Carter looks on as the sub transits the Hood Canal on its way home to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, September 11, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Russia's navy is smaller in numbers than its Cold War predecessor, but <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-submarine-warfare-increasing-focus-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its subs have grown more sophisticated</a>, departing from the previous approach of lots of ships of varying quality. "T<span>hey are taking a page from our playbook, which is go for quality instead," Nordenman said.</span></p><p><span>Those <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-submarine-activity-increasing-around-uk-and-in-north-atlantic-2018-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">increasingly active</a> subs - and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-losharik-sub-spooking-nato-2016-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">their potential</a> for clandestine operations - have stoked new concern among Western naval officials.</span><span></span></p><p><span>In 2015, US officials said increased Russian undersea activity could have been <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-increased-naval-activity-threatening-undersea-cables-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">efforts to locate those cables</a>. At the end of 2017, Stuart Peach, then chief of the British <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">defense</keyword> staff, said the "vulnerability of the cables that criss-cross the seabeds" was "<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-britain-says-west-must-defend-undersea-cables-from-russian-navy-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a new risk to our way of life</a>."</span></p><p><span>US Navy Rear Adm. Andrew Lennon, commander of NATO's subs forces, said in December that Russian underwater activity around those cables <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-increased-naval-activity-threatening-undersea-cables-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appeared to be unprecedented</a> and that Moscow "is clearly taking an interest in NATO and NATO nations' undersea infrastructure."</span></p><p><span>Growing reliance on telecommunications and the internet has made that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/map-shows-extent-of-undersea-internet-cables-that-russians-could-cut-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sprawling cable network</a> more valuable, even as the cables themselves remain vulnerable to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/undersea-international-internet-cables-cut-in-africa-2018-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sabotage</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ships-anchor-cuts-internet-cables-to-jersey-jt-2016-11" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accidents</a>.</span></p><p>"Intercepting and disrupting the opponent's communications has sort of been part of warfare since the beginning of time," Nordenman said earlier this year. "And this is the 21st-century, underwater equivalent."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/life-us-navy-submarine-military-training-armed-forces-2016-9">Everything you've ever wanted to know about life on a US Navy submarine</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The West is worried about Russian subs lurking around undersea cables, and the US is sanctioning companies helping them do it

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Japanese Ministry of <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">Defense</keyword></span></p><p class="caption">A Chinese Shang-class (Type 093) nuclear attack submarine in the contiguous zone of the Senkaku Islands</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>China actively wants to change the status quo in the Pacific and poses a more immediate threat to Japan.</strong></li><li><strong>Russia has also been building up its Pacific fleet to be a formidable force in the region.</strong></li><li><strong>Most of Japan's response has been geared towards Japan's acquisition of more military equipment and systems.</strong></li></ul><p><br />China and Russia are sending aircraft and naval vessels into Japanese territory, and the two countries show no sign of slowing down.</p><p>China's aggressive activity in the South China Sea is <a href="https://www.cfr.org/interactives/chinas-maritime-disputes?cid=otr-marketing_use-china_sea_InfoGuide#!/chinas-maritime-disputes?cid=otr-marketing_use-china_sea_InfoGuide">well documented</a>. It has disputes with five different countries over a number of islands and waters that they claim to control. Comparatively, the East China Sea - where this conflict with Japan has been unfolding - has been much more calm.</p><p>At the center of China and Japan's feud is the Senkaku Islands, a group of uninhabited islands under Japanese control, but claimed by China who call them the Diaoyu Islands.</p><p>Richard Weitz, a senior fellow and the director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute, told Business Insider that the Chinese "want to enforce their claims" by forcing foreign planes to acknowledge China's capability to control airspace and the waters of contested territory.</p><p>Weitz said Russia is more interested "in monitoring US military activity in the country." Its conflict with Japan also concerns the Kuril Islands, which were historically part of Japan and were taken by the Soviet Union in the last days of World War II.</p><p>For now, there does not appear to be any coordination between China and Russia as they flex their muscles in the Pacific. That could change, Weitz warned, if the US interferes and drives the two powers closer together.</p><p>With a resurgent Russia to its north, a nuclear armed North Korea to its west, and an increasingly capable and powerful China to its Southwest, Japan could become boxed in.</p><h2>China wants 'to change the status quo'</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Japanese Ministry of Defense</span></p><p class="caption">A map showing the routes of Chinese (red) and Russian (yellow) aircraft. The Japanese Ministry of Defense labels the Kuril Islands (north-west corner) as part of Japan, but they are under de facto control of Russia</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>China kicked 2018 off with an incursion into the contiguous zone of the Senkaku Islands on January 11.</p><p>A Chinese Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 054 frigate and a Shang-class nuclear-powered attack submarine were used in the operation, distinguishing the incident from prior incursions in two ways.</p><p><span>The frigate was an official PLAN vessel instead of a more commonly used Coast Guard ship. Additionally, China had never sent a submarine into the contested waters before.</span></p><p><span>Japanese government data that was translated for Business Insider by <span style="font-weight: 400;">Nori Katagiri, an assistant professor of political science at Saint Louis University and the inaugural visiting research fellow for the JASDF Air Staff College, shows that </span></span><span>China has dramatically increased its naval and aviation activity since 2012 -</span><span> prior to which there was virtually no activity. </span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs</span></p><p class="caption">A chart from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs showing the amount of times the JCG and JMSDF were sent to intercept Chinese ships.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>PLAN aircraft were responsible for 51% of JASDF scrambles from April 1 to September 30, according to <a href="http://www.mod.go.jp/js/Press/press2017/press_pdf/p20171013_05.pdf">data</a> from the Japanese Ministry of Defense. Some of these intercept missions showed an increasing aggression on the part of the Chinese.</p><p>In August 2017, China <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/china-is-flying-bombers-and-spy-planes-near-japan-2017-11">flew</a> H-6K bombers - aircraft that carry nuclear weapons - across the Pacific toward Japan's Kii Peninsula on Japan's mainland for the first time. When Japan sends complaints of air violations, the Chinese government responds aggressively, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/china-is-flying-bombers-and-spy-planes-near-japan-2017-11">telling</a> Japan to "get used to it."</p><p>The overall rise in Chinese activity may stem from the country's recent military modernization efforts.</p><p>"China is much more active about wanting to change the status quo," Weitz said.</p><p>Zack Cooper, a senior fellow for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider that two things are preventing China from being more bold - the US-Japan alliance, and the superiority of the JSDF.</p><p>The US is obliged to defend Japan if it were ever attacked by a foreign nation. Because of this, China has stopped just short of large provocative actions.</p><p>"If the US-Japan alliance did not exist, the Chinese would be pushing much much harder," Cooper said.</p><p>However, Cooper said that "both countries know that given the scale and pace of China's military modernization, it's just a matter of time before China is able to outclass Japan in most areas of the military competition."</p><p>Until then, China will likely keep trying to push the boundaries, just short of drawing in the US.</p><p>"[China's] current strategy makes a lot of sense," Weitz said. The Chinese will "keep on building up their capabilities, keep on putting pressure on Japan."</p><p>The goal, he said, is to "slowly, over time, change the underlying situation in their favor."</p><h2>Russia returning to Cold War activities</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Japanese Ministry of Defense</span></p><p class="caption">A Russian Tu-95 bomber flying near the island of Hokkaido photographed by JASDF pilots, October 29, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>To the north, Russia is <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2017/11/russias-pacific-fleet-to-receive-10-new-warships-in-2018/">building up</a> its Pacific fleet to be a formidable force in the region. Two of Russia's three Borei-class submarines, the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-most-advanced-submarine-just-launched-2017-11">most advanced ballistic missile submarines</a> in the Russian fleet, are assigned to the Pacific Fleet.</p><p>Additionally, Russia <a href="https://www.rbth.com/news/2015/12/09/russian-pacific-fleet-to-get-first-yasen-sub-2017-2018-deputy-commander_549099">plans</a> on sending its newest Yasen-class attack submarine to the Pacific as soon as it is completed and fully integrated. It will be only the second such submarine in the Russia Navy.</p><p>In the air, Russia was responsible for 48% of JASDF air scrambles from April 1 to September 30, the second most behind China. They actually increased the number of flights to Japan, sending 87 more flights to the Japanese Islands than 2016, the year before.</p><p>Like China, the majority of Russian jets flying near Japanese territory are a combination of bombers like Tu-96/142, and spy planes like the Russian Il-38. A number of Chinese and Russian fighters and interceptors have been seen by the JASDF as well.</p><h2>Japan is building up its military and may change its constitution</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lockheedmartin/29958403196/in/photostream/">Lockheed Martin/Flickr</a></span></p><p class="caption">The first Japan Air Self Defense Force F-35, August 24, 2016.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Most of Japan's response has been geared towards Japan's acquisition of more military equipment and systems.</p><p>Prime Minister Shinzo Abe just <a href="https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/12/19/national/politics-diplomacy/japan-approves-introduction-aegis-ashore-missile-defense-system-amid-north-korea-threat/#.Wjwv2pM-d3k">recently approved</a> the installation of two Aegis Ashore missile defense systems by 2023 - a move <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2017/12/russia-opposes-japans-decision-to-deploy-aegis-ashore/">Russia</a> has already criticised.</p><p>Japan also <a href="https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/06/05/business/mitsubishi-heavy-unveils-first-f-35-stealth-fighter-assembled-japan/">produced</a> its first domestically-built F-35 stealth fighter last June, which could soon play an important role for the country.</p><p>Japan's F-35 is the most advanced aircraft in its inventory and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-japan-considers-refitting-helicopter-carrier-for-stealth-fighters-government-sources-2017-12">may be used</a> on refitted versions of the country's Izumo-class helicopter carrier, effectively giving Japan full fledged aircraft carriers- something China has <a href="https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2017/12/26/China-warns-Japan-against-modifying-helicopter-carriers/6631514302394/">warned</a> against.</p><p>The Japanese government also <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-defence/japan-approves-record-defense-spending-that-favors-u-s-made-equipment-idUSKBN1EG081">approved</a> a record increase in defense spending - focused primarily on ballistic missile defense.</p><p>Japan has a pacifist constitution, however, and is governed by what Katagiri called a "defensive defense doctrine." Central to this are two paragraphs in Article 9 of Japan's constitution that renounce war as a means of settling international disputes, and forbids Japan from having war potential.</p><p>"Even if Japan has a lot of equipment, there are serious legal issues that make it difficult for the Japanese to use them," Katagiri said.</p>      <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/north-korea-kim-jong-un-scariest-dictators-2016-1">North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un is 34 - here's how he became one of the world's scariest dictators</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

You Searched For "yasen class submarine" and got 14 results

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Submarines are increasingly lurking in seas around the world, and the US Navy's high-tech Poseidon is there to hunt them

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This amazing graphic shows all of the Russian Navy's submarines

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The US Navy is returning to a Cold War submarine flash point, but the real action may much farther north

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Russia launched a powerful new submarine named after 'Vladimir the Great' - and it's just getting started

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This chart shows all of the submarines currently in the Russian Navy

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The Kremlin just launched what it claims is the 'quietest submarine in the world'

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Russia's Black Sea submarine fleet is getting a serious upgrade

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Russia fired Putin's 'invincible' hypersonic Zircon missile for the first time in Ukraine, experts say

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Russia's troops are tied down in Ukraine, but some of its best subs are still holding the US 'at risk,' top US commanders say

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Putin's 'invincible' missile has a very common problem

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The Navy thinks Russian subs are a growing threat to Europe, and it's mounting a full-court press to counter them

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The West is worried about Russian subs lurking around undersea cables, and the US is sanctioning companies helping them do it

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China's military is turning its aggressive South China Sea tactics on Japan

Ben Brimelow