Must be why they flew bombers to Venezuela on 911...
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/11/world/main4438101.shtml?source=RSSattr...
(CBS/ AP) Two Russian strategic bombers landed in Venezuela on Wednesday
as part of military maneuvers, President Hugo Chavez said, welcoming the
unprecedented deployment at a time of increasing tensions between Moscow
and the U.S.
The Venezuelan leader said the two Russian Tu-160 bombers will conduct
maneuvers and that he hopes to "fly one of those things" himself.
Russian military analysts said it was the first time Russian strategic
bombers have landed in the Western Hemisphere since the Cold War. The
surprise foray into Venezuela was certain to anger Washington and add to
the strain in U.S.-Russian relations over Russia's war in Georgia.
Chavez called the deployment part of a move toward a "pluri-polar world"
- a reference to moving away from U.S. dominance. "The Yankee hegemony
is finished," Chavez said in a televised speech.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the bombers flew to Venezuela on a
training mission and would conduct training flights over neutral waters
in the next few days before returning to Russia, according to a
statement carried by Russian news wires.
Ministry spokesman Alexander Drobyshevsky refused to say how long the
deployment would last or say whether the planes were carrying any
weapons. Military officers in the past have said Russian strategic
bombers do not carry live weapons on patrol flights.
NATO fighters escorted the two Russian bombers on their 13-hour trip to
Venezuela over the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, the Defense Ministry said.
The Russian deployment appeared to be a tit-for-tat response to the U.S.
move to send warships to deliver aid to U.S.-allied Georgia after its
war last month with Russia.
"This is a redux of Cold War games, and a dangerous thing to do," said
Moscow-based military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer. "It will only
strengthen the hand of those in the United States who want to punish
Russia for its action in Georgia."
Earlier this week, Russia said it will send a naval squadron and
long-range patrol planes to Venezuela in November for a joint military
exercise in the Caribbean.
Alexander Konovalov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Strategic
Assessment, said the deployment would lead to further deterioration in
U.S.-Russia relations.
"It's a demonstration of Russia's ability to do things nasty: You send
warships to the Black Sea and we send bombers next to your door,"
Konovalov said. "It will have a negative impact on global stability."
The commander of Russia's strategic missile forces also repeated
warnings Wednesday that Russian ballistic rockets could be aimed at U.S.
missile defenses in Europe if the system is ever built, news agencies
reported.
