World

Quoting americaldoc:

Her is another big one for Russia launched today

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/russia-s-giant-nuclear-torpedo-carrying-submarine-declared-operational/ar-AAZmUSw?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=990f9537fbde4976a79f6fc059b2420f

And they view this as a 'success'.

Here is where American cost/benefit analysis and game theory have driven Russia into the ground.

Consider this....this submarine's primary armament will now be 4 glorivied (long-range/maneuvering) huge mini-subs.

It will haul them everywhere.....forevermore. If they launch one ..... it'll be Armageddon....an unrestricted nuclear exchange. As such, it has deterrent value....just like a nuclear ballistic missile or cruise missile. Except......it can only be launched at port cities.....unlike a nuclear ballistic missile or cruise missile.

It's utility is that it would probably be more effective at destroying moored ships than an air or ground burst missile would be. The Bikini tests have shown that ships are extremely resistant to air/surface burt nukes.

Now..... how many such ports in the world are there, controlled by Russia's 'adversaries'. Perhaps 12 (Norfolk, San Diego, Alameda, Bremerton, Kings Bay, Philadelphia, Scapa Flow, etc).

So......
1) there are a dozen or so targets for which this 'adds value' as a deterrent
2) the space dedicated to attack those dozen or so targets......is lost, and can not be used to target the hundreds of other strategic targets in Russia's adversaries
3) with minimal 'deterrent' value (and a small target set).....the space can also now NOT be used to carry conventional (non-nuclear) weaponry. You know....the kind that could be used in a conventional war .....LIKE IN UKRAINE OR SYRIA.

Meanwhile.....in the free world.....these cost/benefit analyses ARE done. America fields enough Trident subs to destroy every major city in Russia.....NOT JUST THE COASTAL CITIES. And are remaining subs, although then can carry nuclear weapons, primarily carry the weapons America uses EVERY YEAR.

Good luck finding an American nuclear sub that has NOT fired dozens of Tomahawk cruise missiles in its service life.

These Russian boats add NOTHING to their strategic deterrent. And the little nuclear mini-subs have NO VALUE in low-level (Afghan/Syria/Iraq/Ukraine/etc) conflicts.

This is the kind of GROSS mis-allocation of resources that that inevitably results from an un-elected kleptocracy.

The Russian military is a donkey-show.

https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2022/07/08/russia-acquired-belgorod-sub-it-carries-six-poseidon-nukes/
MOSCOW ($1=62.90 Russian Rubles) — Officially, the Russian Navy acquired the largest submarine built in 40 years – Belgorod, Oscar II-class. The information was confirmed by the largest shipbuilding enterprise in Russia – Sevmash.
The Belgorod submarine is a nuclear submarine, and its construction began nearly three years ago – in 2019. The length of the submarine is 184 m and its displacement is 14,700/17,000 tonnes surfaced and 24,000/30,000 tonnes submerged. There is currently no official information on her range, but according to open source data, her maximum speed is 32 knots [59 km/h; 37 mph] surfaced.

The main purpose of the Belgorod submarine is to carry six nuclear unmanned underwater vehicles [UUVs] – the Poseidon nuclear torpedoes. During combat, Belgorod can integrate a small nuclear submarine designed for deep-sea diving under its keel. Belgorod also impresses with other key advantages – the integration of a second rescue submarine on Belgorod’s back, as well as the ability to carry a large payload, including independent nuclear power plants.
The armament of the Belgorod nuclear submarine is standard for this class of submarines – torpedoes, cruise missiles, mines. More impressive is the presence of six Poseidon nuclear torpedoes.
About Poseidon UUV

Poseidon is an intercontinental nuclear-powered nuclear-armed autonomous torpedo. The Poseidon is the largest torpedo currently in the world ever developed by any country. The torpedo is 24 meters long and has a diameter of 2 meters. Its speed underwater is remarkable – 70 knots. For people who don’t understand sea speed, 70 knots equals 130 km/h. The torpedo can swim at a depth of 1 km. The propulsion is nuclear, and the warhead it can carry is 2 megatons.

Sorry if this comes off wrong, but it’s really hard to read your comments when you bold every sentence. Please use the feature when something is particularly important, opposed to everything you put in quotes AND bold the type.

The Biden administration decided not to retaliate for the Russian attack, although it was seen as a move by Moscow to redefine the existing red lines between the two powers in Syria. In addition, US military sources note the increase in incidents of Russian fighters flying threateningly close to US aircraft. "The American administration and the Pentagon in Washington are also seriously concerned about the expansion of cooperation between Russia and Iran in the field of offensive tactics ," Israeli media reports. These incidents appear to coincide with the harassment of US warships by Iranian Guard speedboats in the Red Sea and the Gulf. The Pentagon has counted 59 such incidents in recent months.
CENTCOM sources attribute both the expansion of aggressive Russian operations in eastern Syria and their coordination with Iran to the arrival of Russian General Chaiko from Ukraine and his apparent determination to prove his mettle.
Escalation between Russian and US troops in Syria clearly linked to US support for Ukraine.
The more weapons Kyiv gets from NATO, the "hotter" the situation in the Middle East becomes. There is an opinion that Moscow is putting hard pressure on Washington in Syria in order to create conditions for new contacts between the State Department and the Russian Foreign Ministry, especially in the context of the nuclear program of Iran and Syria.

They've been doing this in Ukraine for decades, but especially after 2014 when the O-bomber and his buddies over threw the Ukrainian democratically elected gov't.