Ukraine will not repeat Caribbean crisis - expert
MOSCOW. March 7 (Interfax-AVN) - The political conflict between Russia and the United States which arose as a result of the current situation in Ukraine will not lead to a standoff similar to the 1962 Caribbean crisis, former chief of the Russian Defense Ministry's Main Directorate for International Military Cooperation Col. Gen. Leonid Ivashov said.
"There will be no Caribbean crises. The 1962 Caribbean crisis was needed to demonstrate to the United States the possibility of nuclear destruction as a response, that the Soviet Union is capable of delivering its nuclear warheads to the U.S. This crisis radically changed the relations between the USSR and the U.S. and the situation worldwide," Ivashov told Interfax-AVN on Friday.
The U.S. will, of course, be creating anti-Russian propaganda and disruptive actions, but they will have to do so with greater caution, he said. "There will be no war, no Caribbean crisis," the expert said.
Asked about redeployment of several U.S. fighter jets to the Baltic States, Ivashov said U.S. President Barack Obama is doing this to boost his own authority.
"There is still a host of measures that can be taken. These guys only understand their own will and strength. And the will currently manifested by the president and parliament of Russia should be demonstrated in our relations with the U.S.," Ivashov said.
Already there are noticeable changes in Western policy, he added. "Europe does not want to go to war, they have enough problems without war. The European nations have long been anxious to rid themselves of the U.S. dictate. And as soon as Russia takes some steps disobeying the U.S., we see a rise in anti-U.S. activity in Europe," Ivashov said.