Gen. Erik Kurilla was taken to the USS West Virginia and boarded for about eight hours as the submarine surfaced at an undisclosed location in international waters at sea. The West Virginia is one of the Navy’s Ohio-class long-range submarines, known as boomers. They are stealthy and, as part of America’s nuclear triad, can launch nuclear missiles and are considered a key strategic deterrent. The US rarely advertises the location of its nuclear-powered submarines and does not often have them patrolling the Middle East. In a statement Wednesday, U.S. Central Command said Kurila met with Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, on the submarine. He said the Kurilla also received a “hands-on demonstration of the vessel’s capabilities”. “These submarines are the crown jewel of the nuclear triad, and West Virginia demonstrates the agility, survivability, readiness and capability” of U.S. forces at sea, Kurilla said in the statement. The unusual submarine visit by a Central Command leader comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to use nuclear weapons as his forces lose ground in the war in Ukraine. And Iran – which is in the Central Command’s territory – has become more involved in the war, supplying waves of drones that Russia is using to strike targets in Ukraine, including power plants, housing and other key infrastructure. Central Command leaders have frequently visited US naval vessels in waters around the Middle East, including massive aircraft carriers routinely sent to the region as a deterrent to Iran. Since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan ended, the Navy has not had a frequent carrier presence in the region. The story continues The tour of the Kurilla submarine also came as NATO began its annual nuclear drills in northwestern Europe. Fourteen of NATO’s 30 member nations were scheduled to take part in the exercises, which take place around the same time each year and last about a week. The exercises involve fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but do not involve live bombs. American B-52 long-range bombers participate in the maneuvers. Russia usually conducts similar nuclear force exercises this month and these are expected to start soon. The Ohio-class submarines are equipped with Trident II D-5 missiles. The U.S. submarine fleet, split between bases in Bangor, Washington, and King’s Bay, Georgia, represents one leg of the U.S. nuclear “triad,” along with the Air Force’s B-2 and B-52 long-range bombers and land-based Minuteman 3 missiles.
