The Kremlin has officially denied plans to strengthen its Baltic fleet following Warsaw’s announcement that US Patriot missiles will be located close to the Russian border.

“Rumours that surface, underwater and aviation elements of the Baltic Fleet will be strengthened in response to the planned placement of US Patriot missiles in Poland near the Russian border are false,” says the Russian Defence Ministry.

The original report that Russia would be beefing up its Baltic fleet came from anonymous navi official quoted by the Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

Meanwhile, the Russian daily Viedomosti has written that Russia is going to pursue its initial plan to install Iskander missiles system in Kaliningrad, the Russian land corridor near the Polish border. Moscow withdrew that plan when the US backed down from installing the anti-missile system in Poland and the Czech Republic.

But Igor Korotchenko from the Russia’s Defence Ministry predicts the comeback of Iskander project and stresses that the Patriot missiles are an equivalent of Russian S-300 batteries and will enable Americans to control air space over the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. (mg)  

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Russia to strengthen Baltic fleet in Patriot missile response, thenews.pl, Jan 21