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Russia Deploys New Missiles to Westernmost Baltic Region

Russia S-400
Russian S-400 air defense missile systems being unloaded from an An-124 Russian cargo plane at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria / AP
November 21, 2016

The Russian military has deployed anti-ship missiles in the Kaliningrad exclave that borders NATO members Poland and Lithuania, the Associated Press reported Monday, citing the Interfax news agency.

The positioning of the Bastion missile-launchers comes amid heightened anxiety among NATO member states who are concerned over President-elect Donald Trump's campaign rhetoric against the transatlantic security alliance as tensions escalate between Russia and the West.

The Bastion fires Oniks cruise missiles that are built to target ships and ground targets with a range of roughly 280 miles.

Viktor Ozerov, chairman of the defense committee in the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, announced separate plans on Monday to station S-400 surface-to-air missiles and nuclear-capable Iskander ballistic missiles to Kaliningrad, Reuters reported.

Ozerov told the state-run RIA news agency the deployment of the missiles would serve as a deterrent to the installation of a U.S. missile shield in Romania.

"As response measures to such threats we will have ... to deploy additional forces ... This reinforcement includes deployment of S-400 and Iskander systems in Kaliningrad," Ozerov said.

In May, a few weeks after the U.S. declared the anti-missile shield operational, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Russia would deploy "action in response to guarantee our security."

Officials from Romania and Poland have requested a heightened NATO presence.