White House Increasing Surveillance of Russian Enclave as Nuclear Tensions Heighten

The United States has carried out multiple surveillance flights around Kaliningrad, the Russian enclave, this week. The missions by American spy planes are likely assessing Moscow’s nuclear weapons activity. 

During the past week, at least three Boeing RC-135s have circled Kaliningrad, the Russian enclave on the Baltic Sea sandwiched between North Atlantic Treaty Organization members Lithuania and Poland. In recent months, the unconnected Russian territory has become increasingly important. 

Earlier this year, NATO announced it would welcome  Finland and Sweden into the alliance. Moscow warned it could increase its military presence in the region as a response to potential  NATO strategic weapons deployments within its prospective new members’ territory. 

Additionally, Russia and Lithuania’s relationship degraded after Vilnius blocked Moscow from transporting goods from the homeland to its enclave. After receiving threats from the Kremlin and pressure from the European Union, Lithuania has relaxed most of the restrictions. 

The surveillance flights come as Western leaders are increasingly concerned that Russian President Vladimir Putin could order a nuclear strike. Politico recently reported that Western intelligence agencies “are stepping up efforts to detect any Russian military moves or communications that might signal that Putin has ordered the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine.”