Russian warships in Cuba are no threat, US says

Russian warships in Cuba are no threat, US says

US officials have played down Wednesday's arrival of four Russian naval vessels in Cuba for military drills.

The visit of the vessels - which include a nuclear-powered submarine and a frigate - have been seen as a show of force amid Moscow's tensions with the West over the war in Ukraine.

They are anchored at the Havana Bay - some 90 miles (145km) from the US state of Florida.

"We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States," the Pentagon said.

The Russian moves were consistent with "routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations," press secretary Sabrina Singh added.

Russia's defence ministry says the Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the Kazan submarine are both carriers of advanced weapons, including hypersonic missiles Zircon. They earlier conducted missile drills in the Atlantic.

But Cuba's foreign ministry says none of the vessels has nuclear arms on board, and their five-day visit does not pose a threat to the region.

US officials say they are closely monitoring the visit. The US Navy also used sea drones to shadow the Russian vessels as they got close to Cuba, BBC's US partner CBS reports.