Russia07 September, 20262 min read
Russia Condemns U.S. Mk-41 Missile Deployment in Norway, Says Sites Become Targets
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Russia condemns US missile deployment in Norway as destabilizing and undermining strategic stability talks. Moscow says Mk-41 systems threaten European Russia and escalate NATO forces near borders.
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Norway missile deployment condemned
Russia condemned the U.S. deployment of an advanced missile system to Norway, saying the move dealt a further blow to the prospect of U.S.-Russia talks on strategic nuclear stability. In a statement, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the deployment in Norway of a missile system based on Mk-41 launchers that can be used to fire a range of missiles, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, posed a threat because missiles fired from them would be capable of reaching a substantial part of European Russia, including Moscow.
Russia said it would pay "particular attention" to the deployment sites and command-and-control centres of U.S. missile systems and that they would become targets in the event of a military conflict. The Times of India framed the same Russian warning as a threat to nuclear talks, quoting the foreign ministry’s line that the deployment could "reset to zero" the conditions for constructive dialogue with the U.S. on strategic issues.
Zakharova: NATO destabilizing
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the deployment of U.S. ground-based intermediate-range and shorter-range missile systems in Europe, in particular in Norway, would "nullify the prerequisites for a constructive conversation" with the United States on strategic stability. Zakharova warned that as part of Russia’s response measures, the locations where U.S. systems are deployed and controlled, as well as the infrastructure supporting them, would become a focus of attention for Russia’s strategic deterrence forces, including planning the combat use of relevant strike assets in the event of an armed conflict.
In the Global Banking & Finance Review account, Russia described the deployment as another step that would "reset to zero" conditions for constructive dialogue, and it tied the warning to U.S. ground-based intermediate range missiles in Europe. The Caliber.Az report echoed Zakharova’s framing that the missile sites would receive "particular attention" from Russia’s strategic deterrence forces, including planning for combat use in an armed conflict.
Targets and dialogue at risk
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the deployment of U.S. missile systems in Norway would undermine prospects for strategic dialogue and that favorable conditions for substantive and productive dialogue had not been established. In the EFE account, Zakharova described the deployment as having a "carácter desestabilizador" and said the Mk-41 launchers are designed to launch missiles capable of reaching objectives both land and maritime targets.
EFE also reported Zakharova’s warning that the systems could be used in "acciones agresivas" by NATO against Russia to reach strategic objectives, and that the deployment and command posts and the infrastructure supporting them would be under special attention by Russia’s strategic deterrence forces. The Global Banking & Finance Review report added that Russia said dialogue on strategic stability between Moscow and Washington had been curtailed under the previous U.S. administration and described plans by the current administration to pursue multilateral negotiations involving China as "unrealistic."