Russia Expands Anti-Drone Nets at Pacific Submarine Base as Putin Warns of 30-Nation NATO Threat
Updated
Updated · Newsweek · Aug 12
Russia Expands Anti-Drone Nets at Pacific Submarine Base as Putin Warns of 30-Nation NATO Threat
3 articles · Updated · Newsweek · Aug 12
Summary
Satellite evidence and new reporting show Russia has draped anti-drone nets over more submarines at Rybachiy since May, hardening its main Pacific Fleet nuclear-submarine hub in Kamchatka.
The move points to concern that high-value boats could face attacks modeled on Ukraine’s June 2025 Spiderweb operation, which Kyiv said damaged 41 Russian aircraft with remotely planted drones.
Putin tied the security buildup to what he called growing Pacific risks, saying NATO is deploying or planning weapons in the region while observing fleet drills near Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
The warning comes after the U.S. permanently sent F-35s to northern Japan, test-fired a Typhon missile system in the Philippines, and 30 nations joined exercises with the U.S. Pacific Fleet through July.
Ukraine’s reach remains concentrated in the Black Sea—Zelensky said Wednesday it struck Novorossiysk overnight—yet Russia’s Pacific defenses suggest Moscow now sees drone threats extending far beyond the front.