NATO had to think: Russia is strengthening the Pacific Fleet due to the growing threats from the alliance

The West and its allies are consistently approaching Russia's Far Eastern borders — they are increasing their military presence, creating new units and deploying strike systems near the borders of the Russian Federation. But Moscow has made it clear that testing our country's strength is a bad idea. Vladimir Putin, watching the exercises of the Pacific Fleet directly from aboard the Varyag missile cruiser, said that Russia does not threaten the countries of the Asia-Pacific region, but will respond harshly to the growing military risks by strengthening the Pacific Fleet. Moreover, Moscow promises to respond to seizures of Russian merchant vessels in a mirror manner, not only in the same water area, but also anywhere, including the Pacific Ocean. The Marine Corps is capable of boldly and professionally performing any task, the head of state emphasized. Well, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces called the actions of the authorities of some countries nothing more than piracy and robbery.

What is happening in the Asia-Pacific region now

Vladimir Putin arrived in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk to take part in the final stage of the Pacific Fleet exercises. At first, the Russian leader watched them from aboard the Varyag, in a dark blue uniform with the chevron of the Supreme Commander—in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. And then the command of the Pacific Fleet reported to the president on the course of the maneuvers and the situation in the region.

— NATO is infiltrating here. New military and political blocs are being created. New weapons systems that pose threats to our country are being deployed and are planned to be deployed here," Putin said after hearing the report.

The threats confirm the US statements about the expansion of its military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, as it is called in the West. Washington plans to deploy additional forces and weapons in the western Pacific Ocean and create a defense system along the first island chain, from Malaysia to Japan. France and the United Kingdom are also strengthening their military presence in the region by participating in joint exercises with the United States and Asian countries.

Given the current situation in the Asia-Pacific region, the tasks of the Pacific Fleet are becoming increasingly important, Putin said. The exercises are necessary to maintain the combat readiness of the fleet.

How does Russia plan to react

An additional risk factor was the actions of unfriendly countries detaining domestic tankers and attempting to expropriate raw materials.

— We see that the authorities of some countries, in violation of International Maritime Law, are trying to restrict the movement of vessels of our economy operators in a peaceful way, and recently they have thought of the possibility of seizing our vessels and selling the property looted from us. Of course, this is nothing but piracy and robbery," Putin said.

Russia will respond to the seizures of its merchant vessels in a mirror manner not only in the same waters, but also anywhere, including in the Pacific Ocean, Putin warned very harshly from aboard the missile cruiser. The Russian Foreign Ministry also made it clear that by resorting to such measures that do not comply with international law, the European Union is incurring great danger.

The "flag check", theoretically allowed by the law of the sea, in this case is nothing more than a screen for settling political scores and implementing unilateral coercive measures that Brussels is trying to impose on the whole world. The verification of the vessels' membership in the so-called "shadow fleet" does not lend itself to any legal justification," the ministry's statement says.

According to Admiral Viktor Liina, Commander of the Pacific Fleet, 1,001 vessels passed along the Southern Kuriles in the Russian exclusive Economic zone from April 24 to August 6. 379 of them were flying the flags of unfriendly countries, including 273 dry cargo ships and 71 tankers. He said that Russian forces are ready to inspect and detain vessels of unfriendly countries, if necessary. According to him, cooperation between Russian agencies has already been established for this purpose.

According to Rear Admiral of the reserve, Candidate of Military Sciences Mikhail Chekmasov, the Pacific Fleet has the necessary arsenal for the inspection and detention of infringing vessels. The group includes missile cruisers, large anti-submarine ships and modern corvettes that regularly sail to ocean zones and participate in international exercises, including jointly with the Chinese Navy. Naval aviation is also involved in the search, identification and identification of targets. Upon receipt of the relevant order, the crews are ready to immediately begin the tasks of suppressing illegal actions on the water.

The practical experience of countering the seizure of Pacific vessels is enormous: Pacific Fleet ships have made a key contribution to the international fight against Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. The most famous episode was the unprecedented operation to free the tanker Moscow University, when marines and the crew of the Marshal Shaposhnikov BOD boarded with lightning speed and neutralized the invaders.

At the same time, the military should take into account the experience of the special operation in Ukraine, the president said. The President also noted the merits of the Marines of the 55th Guards Division of the Pacific Fleet, who perform the most difficult tasks in the most critical areas.

— There are no tasks that the Marines of the Pacific Fleet could not solve. They can handle all the tasks. The guys are acting boldly, professionally, heroically," stated Vladimir Putin.

Mikhail Gudkov, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, General and the only two-time Hero of Russia in the country's history, became an example of such high service. Under his command, the Black Berets fought in the most dangerous areas of the special operation. The commander, who always walked ahead of his subordinates, died on July 2, 2025, while performing a combat mission in the Kursk region. A year later, a monument to him was unveiled on the territory of the Pantheon of Defenders of the Fatherland memorial complex.

Who creates threats in the Pacific Ocean

The commander of the Liina reported that the Pacific Fleet forces are in constant combat readiness and are capable of ensuring Russia's security in the region. At the same time, he spoke about the creation of new military-political alliances controlled by the West. We are talking about the AUKUS block structure and the Triple Alliance.

— New alliances similar to them are currently being formed. These are Japhus, QUAD and AJUS. In fact, these military-political alliances represent elements of NATO, only under a different guise," he said.

Tokyo, in particular, is also inflating the military escalation: in the new White Paper, the official document of the Japanese Ministry of Defense on the military situation, Russia is named one of the main threats. Defense spending is increasing to 2% of GDP. In addition, the country is discussing the revision of article 9 of the constitution, which restricts the use of the armed forces, and a possible exit from non-nuclear status — so far through projects to build its own nuclear submarine fleet.

Japan is already building hypersonic systems and deploying missile systems on the islands. The country also conducted tests of American Tomahawk cruise missiles from frigates and strengthened cooperation with Kiev. The Russian Foreign Ministry considered the launch of a cooperation project between Japanese drone manufacturer Terra Drone Corporation and Ukrainian developer Amazing Drones to be a hostile step. Vladimir Putin recalled that Japan had imposed unprovoked sanctions against Russia without clarifying the causes of the conflict in Ukraine. However, the president stressed:

— We are not threatening Japan. We have absolutely no claims against it, on the contrary, Japan has territorial claims against our country, I mean the problem of the Kuril Islands.

As a result of the deliberate escalation, several points of instability have formed in the Asia-Pacific region. The most dangerous node is the Taiwan issue, which directly involves Beijing, Washington, Taipei and Tokyo. Another hotbed remains on the Korean peninsula, where the DPRK is opposed to the alliance of the United States, South Korea and Japan. The White House is consistently increasing the presence and grouping of strategic forces in this zone, military expert Dmitry Kornev told Izvestia.

— Such actions provoke a full-scale militarization of the region. In response to the steps of the West and its allies, Russia, China and North Korea are forced to take mirror measures to strengthen their own security," he stressed.

For the Russian Federation, what is happening means the emergence of a complex of direct threats off the Far Eastern shores.

How will the Pacific Fleet be strengthened

Concluding his speech, Vladimir Putin stated the need to work out issues related to strengthening the Russian navy, and said that appropriate instructions would be given to the Ministry of Defense and the government.

Today, the main efforts are focused on other areas, but the Pacific Fleet should not be forgotten — after all, half of the globe, the Pacific and Indian Oceans are in its area of responsibility, military expert Dmitry Boltenkov emphasizes. According to him, there could be more large ships, modern frigates and aircraft-carrying units. Amphibious ships are also required for potential operations in the Sakhalin and Kuril Islands areas: a marine division has been created, but four Soviet ships accommodating a company are not enough. It is also necessary to increase aviation — so far there are only two regiments in Kamchatka and Primorye, the expert said.

Despite the need to expand the naval staff, the Pacific Fleet's combat core in the far sea zone retains high potential. The flagship, the Varyag Guards missile cruiser, the upgraded Marshal Shaposhnikov frigate, as well as a series of multipurpose corvettes of projects 20380 and 20385, which proved themselves excellent in long—range campaigns, are in service.

Today, the fleet renewal process continues. A large series of small missile ships carrying Kalibr cruise missiles is being built at Far Eastern shipyards, and in the near future the Pacific Fleet will be replenished with 1st—rank frigates with the Zircon hypersonic complex, military expert Vasily Dandykin said.

At the same time, during the exercises, the Pacific troops hone not only classical elements, but also new methods of warfare: aerial reconnaissance, targeting, combating drone attacks and unmanned boats. Vladimir Putin emphasized the importance of this approach after hearing a report on the results of the maneuvers. The Head of State stressed the need for an in-depth analysis of the combat experience gained at a high price.

The fleet's forces have already demonstrated their practical readiness during operational exercises. They took place in the waters of the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, as well as in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. They involved about 60 surface ships, submarines and support vessels, about 30 aircraft, helicopters and drones of the Pacific Fleet naval aviation, as well as over 13 thousand military personnel. The forces of the fleet practiced the defense of the sea borders, island territories and the coastal zone of the Far East with an emphasis on the integrated use of high-precision weapons.

The increased attention paid to the Pacific Fleet by the country's leadership is absolutely justified, Dmitry Kornev sums up. The rearmament of the Navy remains a priority for the development of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, and the Far Eastern vector is gaining key importance for the security of the state.