Putin’s Top Aide Patrushev Addressed The West’s Evolving Naval Threats To Russia

Putin’s Top Aide Patrushev Addressed The West’s Evolving Naval Threats To Russia

By Andrew Korybko

All in all, he has a solid understanding of their nature and how to most effectively respond to them, so observers shouldn’t worry about the West turning Russia into a purely land power one day.

Nikolai Patrushev, who’s been one of Putin’s top aides for decades already and is now also the Chairman of the Maritime Board, gave an interview to Arguments & Facts in mid-February. He began by condemning the seizure of Russian-flagged vessels as “piracy” and said that Russia is preparing responses to this. In his words, “If we don’t respond firmly, the British, French, and even the Baltic states will soon become so brazen that they will attempt to completely block our country’s access to the seas”.

One form that could take is “permanently stationing significant forces in key maritime routes, including in regions remote from Russia, ready to cool the ardor of Western corsairs.” Patrushev soberly acknowledged that “our Navy is currently performing missions to protect maritime trade under considerable strain”, however, and also said that “We need far more long-range ocean-going ships capable of operating autonomously for extended periods at significant distances from their bases.”

According to him, “in the near future, the world’s leading navies will be replenished en masse with unmanned ships of at least the corvette class. Dozens more cutting-edge technologies will be introduced that will completely change the face of naval warfare”, in which Russia plans to play a leading role. From his perspective, “the Navy is the most powerful and flexible geopolitical instrument, suitable for active use both in peacetime and during armed conflict.”

He elaborated that “The presence of a fleet, the ability to protect our maritime economic activity, and to transport our oil, grain, and fertilizers, are essential for the normal functioning of the state.” For that reason, Patrushev warned that any Western blockade “will be broken and eliminated by the Navy if a peaceful resolution fails.” He also warned that NATO’s plans include “sabotaging underwater communications, for which we will later be cynically blamed.”

In his assessment, “The old practice of ‘gunboat diplomacy’ is making a comeback, as evidenced by events in Venezuela and around Iran.” That’s why “We are leveraging the potential of BRICS, to which it’s time to give a full-fledged strategic maritime dimension. In January, the first BRICS naval exercise, ‘Will for Peace 2026,’ was successfully held in the South Atlantic, involving Russia, China, Iran, the UAE, and South Africa.” While he might see those drills that way, India politely rebuked this depiction last month.

On that note, any official Russian portrayal of forthcoming naval drills in which only BRICS countries are invited to participate as “BRICS naval drills” following the South African precedent will probably prompt another polite rebuke from India, which strongly disagrees with turning the group into a security bloc. Sergey Rybakov, who’s Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister and BRICS Sherpa, also recently said that “[BRICS had] never been planned as [a military union], and there are no plans to transform it for the purpose.”

In any case, Patrushev’s vision of Russia thwarting Western “piracy” on the high seas together with its BRICS partners is well intentioned and not meant to offend India or the other members that enjoy close ties with the West, with the only point being that some of them strongly oppose this “piracy” too. All in all, he has a solid understanding of evolving naval threats to Russia and how to most effectively respond to them, so observers shouldn’t worry about the West turning Russia into a purely land power one day.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Voice of East.

A massive weak spot in Earth's magnetic field is growing, scientists discover

The South Atlantic Anomaly, a huge weak spot in the geomagnetic field off South America, has expanded and sprouted a lobe in the direction of Africa over the past decade.

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https://www.livescience.com/planet-earth/a-massive-weak-spot-in-earths-magnetic-field-is-growing-scientists-discover

NATO’s New Ally? Argentina And UK Forge Quiet Military Ties To Counter China In The South Atlantic

NATO’s New Ally? Argentina And UK Forge Quiet Military Ties To Counter China In The South Atlantic

By Uriel Araujo

Underreported UK-Argentina military secret dialogue, tied to Milei’s NATO aspirations, seeks to counter China’s growing South Atlantic presence. This partnership could empower US neo-Monroeism, alter Latin America’s strategic balance, and even impact BRICS.

The South Atlantic, a region often overlooked in global geopolitics, is quietly becoming a theatre of strategic manoeuvring, with Britain and Argentina engaging in underreported military dialogue to counter Chinese influence. This development, driven by Argentine President Javier Milei’s pro-Western pivot, could reshape Latin America’s geopolitical landscape, bolster the US-led West’s position in the Southern Cone, and even ripple into the BRICS alliance.

According to an Economist piece, Britain and Argentina have resumed defense talks after years of estrangement, spurred by Milei’s unorthodox stance on the Falklands and concerns about China’s growing footprint in the South Atlantic.

Argentina currently seeks to modernize its dilapidated armed forces with NATO-compatible equipment, while Britain is considering loosening its stringent arms export restrictions, a legacy of the 1982 Falklands War between the two countries. The dialogue, which began warming in February 2024 with British defence attachés visiting Buenos Aires, aims to foster practical cooperation — think training, maritime safety, and Antarctic logistics — while sidestepping the thorny issue of sovereignty of the disputed territories.

The reasoning is: Argentina gains access to Western military technology, and Britain secures a de facto Argentine acknowledgment of its South Atlantic role, thereby enhancing regional security coordination.

This is no easy task, given the historical wounds. One may recall that during the Falklands War, Britain’s preparations were so severe that Margaret Thatcher reportedly considered nuclear options against Argentina. While claims of the UK deploying secret laser weapons in 1982 still lack corroboration, the Royal Air Force (RAF) did draw up plans to bomb Argentine airfields.

No wonder, then, that the Malvinas/Falklands remain a sensitive topic in Argentina, where Milei’s blunt admission, last year, that the islands are “in the hands of the UK” sparked domestic backlash.  While domestically problematic, Milei’s approach, bilateral-wise, has been all about de-escalating day-to-day tensions through humanitarian gestures like cemetery visits and resumed flights. It has in fact opened space for such dialogue.

Here, as usual, the broader context is critical. The US, under Trump’s aggressive neo-Monroe Doctrine, is grappling with waning influence in Latin America. Tensions with Mexico, Brazil, and even Colombia could have left Washington searching for a reliable partner in the region — in the strict and peculiar enough way Washington understands what a partner should be.

Argentina, under Javier Milei’s fiercely pro-Western government, is positioning itself as precisely that ally. One should keep in mind this is a leader who has promised to “get rid” of the peso currency by replacing it with the US dollar.

Under Milei, the South American country in fact withdrew from its pending BRICS application. Meanwhile, the US Coast Guard and the Argentine Navy have started joint operations to curb Chinese fishing in the southwest Atlantic.

Perhaps even more significantly, in April 2024, Buenos Aires formally requested NATO Global Partner status, a move which signs an alignment with the US/UK-led security ecosystem. As a Global Partner Argentina could gain access to advanced technology, training, and exercises: in a way a symbolic leap toward NATO integration.

This pivot in fact dovetails with the British-Argentinian talks, as both London and Buenos Aires have voiced concerns about Beijing’s infrastructure projects and about alleged illegal fishing in the South Atlantic, a region critical for Antarctic access and maritime routes like the Strait of Magellan.

As part of its efforts towards a NATO path (enhancing interoperability with the Alliance standards), Argentina also signed an agreement to acquire 24 surplus F-16 fighter jets from Denmark, valued at around $300 million, a deal supported by American financing — the most significant equipment purchase since the country’s return to democracy

Suffice to say, this alignment could reshape Latin America’s strategic balance. Argentina’s NATO aspirations and its negotiations for Danish Iver Huitfeldt frigates reveal Buenos AIres’ intent to integrate with Western defense networks. For the US, Argentina could also serve as a kind of linchpin to counterbalance Brazil and its nuclear submarine ambitions, which, as I noted elsewhere, have historically leaned on Russian cooperation.

This is no light matter. Even someone as staunchly pro-Western as former US President Jair Bolsonaro sought Moscow’s help pertaining to Brazil’s nuclear submarine project in 2022. Brazil’s military has traditionally sought to challenge Anglo-American dominance in the South Atlantic, a project rooted in the 1982 Falklands War’s lessons and aimed at asserting control over the “Blue Amazon”.

Ironically, in 2017, Argentina, under former President Mauricio Macri’, lodged a formal protest with Brazil regarding the landing of British military aircraft at Brazilian airports en route to the Falkland Islands. Five years before, in 2012, Buenos Aires accused the UK of deploying a nuclear submarine to the region, in violation of the Treaty of Tlatelolco. Such episodes indicate a broader struggle over the South Atlantic’s resources and strategic choke points.

Milei’s recent moves, therefore, risk inflaming tensions with Brazil, which has historically backed Argentina’s Malvinas claims but now sees its neighbour cosying up to its former adversary.

Be as it may, British-Argentinian dialogue is clearly more about strengthening the political West’s presence in the Southern Hemisphere, plus giving Washington’s neo-Monroe strategy a foothold in the South Cone than about healing past wounds.

Uriel Araujo, Anthropology PhD, is a social scientist specializing in ethnic and religious conflicts, with extensive research on geopolitical dynamics and cultural interactions.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Voice of East.

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#Argentina #BRICS #China #Geopolitics #NATO #SouthAtlantic #UK #USA

Imagine a massive whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic. For 26 years, Argentina, Brazil, & Uruguay have fought for it. It would have protected whales from commercial hunting. Sadly, it failed by just a few votes. #WhaleSanctuary #SouthAtlantic #OceanConservation #SaveTheWhales #EndWhaleslaughter #MarineLife #Wildlife

https://www.thecanary.co/global/world-analysis/2024/09/30/whaling-ban-international-commission/

🐧🐧 Falkland Islands 🇫🇰

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After 45 days at sea, crossing the South Atlantic from Cabedelo, Brazil to Cape Town, South Africa, we are back home. It wasn’t an easy passage, and not just because it was our longest yet. We’ll tell all about it in this episode of our podcast.

https://svtropicaldawn.blog/2024/02/09/46-we-made-it-back-to-cape-town/

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