MOSCOW, January 15. /TASS/. The US presence near Russian borders will continue to grow, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev stated, adding that this would destabilize the situation in the world.
"In general, our analysis shows that the American presence near our borders will grow," Patrushev said in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta. In his opinion, "such steps can only be estimated negatively." "The growth of military presence is a military threat to our state, a clear element of destabilization of the situation in the world, which creates a policy of mistrust instead of a policy of partnership," the Russian security chief stressed.
He reminded that during the Cold War, the US has built around 1,200 military bases all over the world. "Since the end of the confrontation between the US and the USSR, their number has decreased, however, there are currently about 800 US bases in the world. Also, we shouldn’t forget that the US supports the highest number of carrier and amphibian groups in the world, which replace land bases. In essence, we can confirm Washington’s return to the well-known ‘gunboat diplomacy’," Patrushev added.
"As for Russia’s western borders, we note the course for the growth of military presence of the US and other NATO members in their vicinity. In 2019, placement of multinational battalion tactical groups in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland will continue. At the same time, Brussels does not hide the fact that that its main goal is to contain our country," the Russian security chief stated. "The strengthening of the European segment of the US global missile defense system continues. The inauguration of the missile defense complex in Poland in addition to the already functioning one in Romania is expected in 2020.".