Nov 24, 2021: Russia’s defense minister on Tuesday accused US bombers of conducting nuclear strikes on Russia from two different directions earlier this month and complained that the planes were within 20 kilometers of the Russian border.

The allegations come amid heightened tensions between Washington and Moscow over Ukraine, with US officials raising concerns about a possible Russian attack on its southern neighbor – a proposal the Kremlin has dismissed as false.

Moscow has in turn accused the United States, NATO and Ukraine of provocative and irresponsible behavior, including the supply of US weapons to Ukraine, the use of Turkish drones by Ukraine against Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine and Includes military exercises near NATO’s own borders.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Moscow had noticed a significant increase in the activity of US strategic bombers, which he said had flown about 30 flights to Russia this month. That is 2.5 times more than the same period last year, he said. Shoigu specifically complained about what he said was a US nuclear attack on Russia earlier this month.

A Pentagon statement quoted Shoigu as saying, “The Secretary of Defense stressed that during the US military exercises ‘Global Thunder’, 10 US strategic bombers dropped nuclear weapons against Russia from the west and east.”

“The minimum proximity to our state border was 20 km.”

Shoigu was quoted as saying that Russian air defence units had spotted and tracked the US strategic bombers and taken unspecified measures to avoid any incidents.

Global Thunder, which this year put US nuclear-capable B-52 bombers through their paces, is the US Strategic Command’s annual nuclear and command exercise designed to test and demonstrate the readiness of US nuclear capabilities.

President Vladimir Putin referenced the apparent episode briefly last week, complaining of Western strategic bombers carrying “very serious weapons” close to Russia. He said the West was taking Moscow’s warnings not to cross its “red lines” too lightly.

Shoigu made the comments in a video conference with Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe. He said that US bomber flights close to Russia’s eastern borders were also a threat to China.

Russia and China agreed at the meeting to step up cooperation between their armed forces when it came to strategic military exercises and joint patrols, the defence ministry said.

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