Family Life

08.05.09 | FL News Team

(Moscow)  --  Russia is discounting any concerns expressed by the U.S. about two nuclear submarines off the East Coast of the country.  The Times online website says that while Moscow did not deny the subs were just 200 miles off the U.S. coast, officials did reject accusations that it was engaging in Cold War-style cat-and-mouse maneuvering.

A military-diplomatic source told Russian state media that its subs in the world's oceans outside their own waters don't violate international maritime law and are within normal practice.  A senior Defense Department official told The New York Times that "any time the Russian Navy does something so out of the ordinary it is cause for worry."  However, the subs have not done anything provocative.

The Moscow official says the Russian navy systematically homes in on the location of NATO submarines, including those of the U.S. Navy in direct proximity to the territorial waters of the Russian Federation.  He emphasizes that it's never been a reason to make a lot of noise in the news media.  He adds that any such hysteria is inappropriate.