World

Lithuania: Russia deploying more missiles into Kaliningrad

05 of February 2018

FILE - In this Saturday, May 9, 2015 file photo, Iskander missile launchers are driven during the Victory Parade marking the 70th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazis in World War II, in Red Square in Moscow. Lithuania's president says Russia has deployed additional nuclear-capable missiles in its Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad on a permanent basis, calling it a threat to Europe. Dalia Grybauskaite told reporters Monday, Feb. 5, 2018 after visiting NATO troops in the town of Rukla that "Iskander missiles are being stationed in Kaliningrad for permanent presence as we speak." (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, file),FILE - In this Saturday, May 9, 2015 file photo, Iskander missile launchers are driven during the Victory Parade marking the 70th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazis in World War II, in Red Square in Moscow. Lithuania's president says Russia has deployed additional nuclear-capable missiles in its Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad on a permanent basis, calling it a threat to Europe. Dalia Grybauskaite told reporters Monday, Feb. 5, 2018 after visiting NATO troops in the town of Rukla that "Iskander missiles are being stationed in Kaliningrad for permanent presence as we speak." (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, file)

Lithuania's president says Russia has deployed additional nuclear-capable missiles in its Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad on a permanent basis, calling it a threat to Europe. The Lithuanian president has told reporters after visiting NATO troops in the town of Rukla that "Iskander missiles are being stationed in Kaliningrad for permanent presence as we speak." The head of Russian parliament's defense committee has confirmed the missiles' deployment.

HELSINKI (AP) — Lithuania’s president says Russia has deployed additional nuclear-capable missiles in its Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad on a permanent basis, calling it a threat to Europe.

Dalia Grybauskaite told reporters Monday after visiting NATO troops in the town of Rukla that “Iskander missiles are being stationed in Kaliningrad for permanent presence as we speak.” She called it a threat not only to Lithuania but to “half of all European countries.”

The head of Russian parliament’s defense committee, Vladimir Shamanov, confirmed the missiles’ deployment in remarks carried by Russian news agencies. He added that the move comes as a response to NATO’s buildup near Russian borders.

The high-precision Iskander missiles have a range of up to 500 kilometers (310 miles). They were temporarily deployed to Kaliningrad for maneuvers in the past.