The Russian Pacific Fleet was warned on Friday to prepare for snap drills that will include practice missile launches to show off its sea power in the West, as the fighting continues in Ukraine.
The order received from Moscow included strategic bombers with nuclear-capable capabilities and other warplanes.

AP reports that Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stated the purpose of the wargames was to test Russia’s armed force’s ability to respond to an aggression.

The Russian military concentrated its main forces in Ukraine but continued to conduct regular drills throughout Russia, training its forces and demonstrating their readiness to disperse across multiple fronts.

Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Defense Minister, speaks to high-ranking officers during a Friday, April 14th, 2023 meeting in Moscow. Shoigu announced that the entire Russian Pacific Fleet would be on high alert for snap drills on Friday, which will include practice missile launches as part of a massive display of force. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, via AP).

AP explains that the scenario for Friday’s exercises envisages a reaction to an enemy’s attempt at landing on Sakhalin Island or the southern Kuril islands.

Japan claims territorial rights over the Kuril Islands. The Soviet Union seized them during the last days of World War II. This dispute has prevented the two countries from signing an official peace treaty.

The chain of islands stretches from Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula to Hokkaido (Japan’s largest Island). Moscow calls the archipelago the Kuril Islands while Tokyo refers to it as its Northern Territories.

In protest against Tokyo’s sanctions regarding Moscow’s actions in Ukraine, Russia suspended its peace talks with Japan last year.

Breitbart News reported that Japan’s Defense Ministry also accused Russia of ordering its military to order a helicopter fly through Japanese airspace near the northernmost island, Hokkaido.