Putin oversees launch of new warships, submarines

MOSCOW/KYIV — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday oversaw the commissioning of several new warships and a nuclear-powered submarine, as he vowed to further strengthen Russia's navy.

Putin gave the green light for Russian flags to be hoisted on the new vessels via video link.

Among the newly commissioned vessels were a corvette, a minesweeper and the Generalissimus Suvorov nuclear-powered submarine that is capable of launching ballistic missiles.

Another submarine, Emperor Alexander III, was put to sea on Thursday and will be commissioned following trials.

"We will increase the pace and volume of construction of various ships, and equip them with the most modern weapons," Putin said in televised remarks.

"All in all, everything to reliably ensure Russia's security, the protection of our national interests in the world ocean."

Putin has made strengthening his armed forces a top priority, equipping the navy with new warships and adding hypersonic missiles described by Putin as "invincible", to Russia's arsenal.

This comes as more Western supplies pour into Ukraine. According to an interview published on Friday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called on NATO member states to supply more weapons to Ukraine.

"I call on allies to do more. It is in all our security interests to make sure Ukraine prevails," Stoltenberg told the German news agency DPA.

He said it was perhaps even more important that Ukraine receives enough ammunition for the systems already in place, adding that the need for ammunition and spare parts was "enormous".

In an address to a group of Western leaders last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked for a wide range of weapons and air defense systems to help combat efforts.

In Kyiv, local officials said Russia launched 16 kamikaze drones into Ukraine overnight on Friday, a day after Moscow fired dozens of missiles in its latest barrage against critical Ukrainian infrastructure.

The Ukrainian Air Force said all 16 drones, which it said were sent from the southeast and north, had been destroyed by air defenses.

In another development, Belarus said on Thursday that it shot down an air defense missile launched from Ukrainian territory, in the first such incident reported by Minsk since the start of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Belarusian authorities had summoned Ukraine's ambassador over the missile. "A strong protest was made in connection with the launch of an S-300 anti-aircraft guided missile from the territory of Ukraine," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Minsk demanded an immediate investigation of the incident, saying such incidents could lead to "catastrophic consequences" and should not happen again, the statement said.

Agencies Via Xinhua