You're reading: Turchynov says Russia trying to scare democratic world with its military, nuclear potential

Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksandr Turchynov has said that the Russian leadership is doing its best to scare the democratic world with its military and especially nuclear potential.

In the middle of August, Russian strategic air forces held a military exercise on firing nuclear missiles in the Black Sea straits, the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. They trained in blocking the U.S. Navy from entering the passage to the Black Sea. In September, a full-scale training exercise of strategic troops started with the participation of the whole nuclear triad of Russia. Operational launches of land, air and sea-based missiles are taking place, Turchynov said.

According to him, a demonstrative flight of strategic bombers to the U.S. coast is also planned to show off Russia’s “nuclear club,” to conceal Russia’s internal problems, and to make the West close its eyes to the occupied Crimea and the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Turchynov added that democratic countries need to understand that strife caused by totalitarianism and militarism, and the subsequent collapse of Russia, is inevitable.