MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th August, 2018) US Navy's Second Fleet can not deter Russia in the North Atlantic, as the Russian fleet is equipped with the latest technology and will receive new submarine and surface ships in the near future, deputy chair of the Russian parliament's lower houses defense committee Yuri Shvytkin told Sputnik on Friday.
Earlier in the day, Commander of US Fleet Forces Command Adm. Chris Grady, speaking at a solemn ceremony on Friday at the naval base in Norfolk, Virginia, said that the United States had officially reactivated its Second Fleet to deter Russia in the Northern Atlantic.
"This can not be a deterrent, it can only be a push to the arms race, while the United States itself does not want to drift into the arms race, and neither do we," Shvytkin told Sputnik.
The lawmaker also noted that such statements and actions on the part of Washington indicate an attempt to lobby for their military-industrial complex.
"At the same time, [US military] power is of rather virtual nature, because it is not capable of exerting any pressure, it can not affect the possible counteraction to our naval forces. Today, our navy is equipped with the latest technology ... At the same time, a number of vessels of both submarine and surface fleet will join in the near future ... The United States needs to calm down and deal with internal problems," the lawmaker concluded.
The revival of the Second Fleet is a response to Russia's activity in the Arctic, to which Washington attaches great importance, but the revival of this fleet will face financial difficulties and take several years, Vladimir Vasilyev, research associate of the Institute for US and Canadian Studies of the Russian academy of Sciences, told Sputnik.
"The United States has plans to expand its presence in the Arctic. Fighting for control of Russia, the opportunity of patrolling and presence in the North Atlantic is one of the most important tasks for the creation of this fleet. The United States attached great importance to the Arctic as zones of confrontation and contact with Russia," Vasilyev said.
Nevertheless, this task may face some setbacks, he noted.
"US fleet expansion program faces big financial difficulties. It is enough to note that in the draft budget for 2019, after all approvals, the financing has been reduced from 13 naval forces units to 12. This is an illustration of the fact that the program faces difficulties. The introduction of the 2nd fleet is a long-term problem," the expert added.
Vasilyev noted that a fleet usually comprises one or two aircraft carriers, five or six submarines and a dozen destroyers. He also recalled that the fleet had been disbanded at one time for financial reasons.
"At this stage, it is more about US intentions than about real politics. Its creation will take at least a few years. At the moment, the United States is telling a lot and publishing about its plans for military construction, creating additional connections, but how will all this be implemented?" the expert wondered.
At the same time, the revival of the Second Fleet will strengthen US presence in the water area of the North Atlantic and in the Arctic, he admitted. As before, the Second Fleet will be deployed in naval bases on the US East Coast, as well as in the ports of Norway and the United Kingdom.
In May this year, the Navy announced the reestablishment of the Second Fleet, saying it would operate on the East Coast of the United States and in the Northern Atlantic.
The fleet was originally created in 1950 and played an important role in the confrontation with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. In 2011, under President Barack Obama, it was disbanded.
Russia has repeatedly criticized NATOs buildup and exercises near its borders, saying such actions were provocative, and could lead to regional and global destabilization.
