The admiral in charge of defending North American airspace warned Thursday that increased Russian military activity is making it harder to defend the U.S. and Canada.
Speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee, Adm. William Gortney — commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command — warned that Russia is working to deploy conventionally-armed long-range cruise missiles that could be launched from submarines or bombers.
“Should these trends continue over time, NORAD will face increased risk in our ability to defend North America against Russian air, maritime and cruise missile threats,” he said in written testimony, CNN reported Friday.
Mr. Gortney said there was a noticeable increase in Russian “military assertiveness” in 2014, and that Russian heavy bombers flew more missions outside of their own airspace than at any point since the Cold War.
The admiral added that the flights are in part likely political statements for Russia to “communicate its displeasure with Western policies, particularly with regard to Ukraine,” an area that has strained relations between Russia and western NATO countries, CNN reported.
• Phillip Swarts can be reached at pswarts@washingtontimes.com.
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