Russia May Put Troops in Venezuela and Cuba if US Tensions Continue

Russian Vishnya (also known as Meridian) class warship CCB-175 Viktor Leonov arrives at Havana's harbor on Feb. 27, 2014. The Vishnya class ships are used for gathering intelligence. Adalberto Roque/AFP/Getty Images

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, who headed Jan. 10’s talks with U.S. officials in Geneva, said he could neither “confirm nor exclude” the possibility of a Russian military build-up within the borders of Cuba and Venezuela if tensions continue with the United States over Ukraine.

Ryabkov’s statement adds pressure to existing tensions with the West over the presence of Russian troops near the Ukraine border, which prompted a high stakes meeting with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on Jan. 12 in Vienna.