`Russia to deploy nuke sub to Pacific naval base this year`

Russia will deploy its first independently developed nuclear submarine since the collapse of the Soviet Union to a naval base in the Pacific this year, a leading Japanese daily said Thursday.

The Yomiuri Shimbun quoted Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as saying Monday, “Since the test for the submarine is going well, it can be deployed to the Pacific naval base whose headquarters is in Vladivostok by year’s end. Our navy will enhance its capabilities ranging from nuclear deterrent to the attainment of maritime interest.”

The Yuri Dolgoruky is Russia`s state-of-the-art nuclear submarine equipped with submarine-launched ballistic missiles with a range of 8,000 kilometers. Its home port is expected to be in the Kamchatka Peninsula.

The Kremlin also plans to deploy a Mistral-class landing vessel purchased from France to the Pacific base. The ship can accommodate 16 helicopters and four vehicles for landing operations, 13 tanks, 100 vehicles and 450 soldiers.

Russia has built up its Far East naval capabilities to enhance its nuclear deterrent against the U.S. and respond to China’s rapid military build-up, according to experts.

Separately, Japanese media said two Chinese fishery monitoring ships conducted a reconnaissance mission on Aug. 24 in waters near the disputed Senkaku Islands, called the Diaoyu Islands in Chinese, ahead of the first anniversary of a naval skirmish between the two countries over the sovereignty of the islands.

The Japanese maritime security agency warned Chinese vessels to leave Japanese waters, but the ships reportedly violated Japan’s territorial waters twice.

According to Japanese media, China has set a policy of constant monitoring of waters near the disputed islands after the skirmish and has sent monitoring vessels 13 times there.

Tokyo is known to have concluded that Beijing seeks to effectively control the islands through maritime reconnaissance after turning the islands into disputed territory.

jkmas@donga.com