Advanced US weapons in secret cave near Russian border

Tanks, artillery and logistics equipment are being moved into a cave in Norway, as the US pushes to place military equipment near the NATO-Russia border.

This photo taken in 1997 shows the entrance to a US military cave in Norway. Photo: PressTV

"Any equipment that is deployed for rapid response reduces costs and enhances our capabilities, helping to support operations in times of crisis, so we can immediately use equipment that is ready and respond to any crisis,"CNNquoteWilliam Bentley, officer of the Second Marine Expeditionary Corps, said in a statement yesterday.

The secret, climate-controlled caves in central Norway were first used as a US weapons depot in 1982, helping to bolster NATO's defenses against the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

When that era ended, the US questioned the rationale for maintaining the expensive state-of-the-art cave complex, forcing the Norwegian government to shoulder the costs of saving the caves in the 1990s, Nordenman said.

The secured cave system houses about 100 Norwegian and American soldiers. It is a modern facility, containing enough equipment to support 15,000 Marines.

Some 6,500 pieces of equipment from the cave will be used in the Cold Response 16 exercise later this month. Twelve NATO allies and partners and more than 16,000 troops will participate. The weapons and equipment from the cave will also be used to support operations in Iraq.

Russia has a 195-km border with Norway. This border was heavily militarized during the Cold War and the Russian Navy's Northern Fleet is based in Murmansk Oblast, about 160 km from the border.

US military Humvee vehicle in a Norwegian cave. Photo: PressTV

According to VNE