Why We Should All Fear Russian Submarines, By James Reed and Brian Simpson

Russian submarines present a multifaceted danger to the West, blending advanced technology, strategic positioning, and the potential for catastrophic disruption. The Russian navy's underwater fleet has evolved into a formidable force, with vessels like the Yasen-class—nuclear-powered and nearly silent—capable of lurking undetected off Western coasts. These submarines, alongside the diesel-electric Kilo-class, pack Kalibr cruise missiles and hypersonic Zircons, are able to strike land targets with precision from vast distances. Then there's the Borei-class, armed with Bulava ballistic missiles—16 per boat, each carrying multiple warheads—capable of hitting any Western city from the deep ocean. Perhaps most chilling is the Belgorod, a special-mission sub carrying Poseidon nuclear torpedoes, 100-megaton monstrosities designed to unleash radioactive tsunamis on coastal populations.

The strategic threat is immediate and pervasive. These submarines shrink the West's reaction time in a crisis—minutes, not hours—whether it's a Yasen-class boat patrolling the Atlantic or a Borei-class sub hiding under Arctic ice. They could target critical infrastructure, like the undersea cables that carry 95 percent of global internet traffic, severing communication and crashing economies in a heartbeat. Pipelines and offshore energy platforms, vital to Europe's gas supply, are equally vulnerable, as hinted by incidents like Nord Stream. Russia's Northern Fleet, based on the Kola Peninsula, prowls the GIUK Gap—Greenland, Iceland, UK—threatening NATO's ability to reinforce Europe across the Atlantic. In the Arctic, where Western anti-submarine warfare struggles, Russia's ice-capable subs eye resources and shipping lanes, while off the US East and West Coasts, detected incursions—like the Severodvinsk in 2018 or Kazan near Florida in 2024—put cities and bases in cruise-missile range.

Operationally, the West faces a steep challenge. Russian stealth tech outpaces some NATO sonar, leaving gaps where subs can linger or strike without warning. Psychologically, the effect is just as potent—high-profile deployments and Putin's nuclear sabre-rattling, echoing his 2017 naval doctrine, sow fear and test resolve. In conflict, the Ukraine war offers a preview: Kilo-class subs devastated energy grids with Kalibr strikes, a tactic scalable to NATO ports, bases, or cities. The West's mitigation efforts stumble on resource limits—NATO's submarine fleet, while advanced with US Virginia-class boats, is stretched thin against Russia's 72-strong mix. Political will falters too; budgets for countering an "invisible" threat compete with domestic crises, leaving blind spots, especially in the Arctic.

And the danger takes on a collapsological hue. A single Poseidon detonation could render coastal hubs like New York or London uninhabitable, triggering economic collapse as markets tank and refugees flee. Severed cables or disrupted energy could amplify existing strains— inflation, climate costs—pushing societies toward breakdown. Even without intent, environmental risks loom: rotting reactors in sunken hulks like the K-159 could leak, or a Poseidon could poison fisheries, gutting food security. Russia's submarines aren't about winning a conventional war; they're about holding the West hostage—economically, militarily, psychologically. They thrive in asymmetry, offsetting NATO's surface dominance with a lurking, existential threat. As the world teeters in 2025, these underwater phantoms ensure the West's stability is never more than a depth charge away from unravelling.

https://michaeltsnyder.substack.com/p/russias-nightmare-ultra-quiet-stealth

"Russian submarines are known from their advanced stealth capabilities. The Russians currently have 64 subs that are operational, and many of them have been equipped with "ultra-quiet" features that make them incredibly difficult to detect. When we think of nuclear war, we tend to think of missiles that are fired from thousands of miles away. But the Russians could simply move a couple dozen "ultra-quiet" subs right along our coastlines and conduct a sneak attack from point blank range. Major cities on both coasts, including Washington D.C., would be destroyed almost instantly. Other major targets deep inside the continental United States would be wiped out within just a few minutes.

If Russian subs simultaneously launched hundreds of nuclear missiles at us from point blank range in the middle of the night, there wouldn't be much that we could do. The White House would be destroyed before they could even get the president out of bed.

I asked Google AI about the stealth capabilities of Russian submarines, and I was told that they are considered to be a "nightmare"…

Russian submarines, particularly the Yasen-class and Borei-class, are known for their stealth capabilities, making them difficult to detect and track, and some are even considered "nightmare" for Western military observers.

Yasen-class subs are particularly stealthy, and according to Google AI they are designed to launch cruise missiles that can carry nuclear warheads…

Yasen-class submarines can carry nuclear warheads, as they are designed to be nuclear-powered cruise missile submarines, capable of launching missiles with nuclear warheads.

Borei-class subs possess even more firepower.

Each Borei-class sub carries up to 16 ballistic missiles, and each one of those missiles can carry multiple independently-targetable reentry vehicles…

The Russian Navy possesses eight Project 955/A "Borei-class" (NATO: Dolgorukiy) SSBNs, five of which are the improved Borei-A (Project 955A) variant. These submarines are 170 meters long and can travel up to 29 knots when submerged. Each vessel can carry 16 Bulava SLBMs, each of which contains multiple MIRVs. Featuring pump-jet propulsion and other acoustic improvements, the Borei-class submarines are considerably stealthier than their Soviet-era predecessors.

The Russians have the ability to pull off a nuclear sneak attack against our country at any time.

So it would be in our interest to make peace with them. …

Donald Trump has warned Vladimir Putin he is ready to do "very bad things" to Russia financially if he does not accept a ceasefire in the war with Ukraine. The US President told reporters in Washington: "There are things that wouldn't be pleasant in a financial sense. I can do things financially that would be very bad for Russia. I don't want to do it that because I want to get peace. "In a financial sense, yes we could do things that would be very bad for Russia, that would be devastating for Russia. But I don't want to do that."

Publicly threatening Russia is not going to help, and it has the potential to backfire severely.

So hopefully President Trump and his team will choose to take a more diplomatic approach.

Less than 24 hours after Ukraine agreed to the 30 day ceasefire that the Trump administration is proposing, the Russians pummelled Ukraine with a dramatic series of drone and missile strikes…

Russia staged blistering strikes across Ukraine last night just hours after Kyiv signalled it was ready for a ceasefire following talks with the United States.

The massive missile and drone attacks cast doubt on Vladimir Putin's willingness to accept Donald Trump's demands for peace in the three year war.

And Russian forces continue to make steady gains on the ground.

In fact, it is being reported that the Russians have successfully taken the town of Sudzha…

Footage emerged this morning of Moscow's soldiers flying the tricolour in Sovetsyaka Square in central Sudzha as other clips emerged purporting to show fleeing Ukrainian vehicles being targeted by Russian drones. 'Our troops are successfully advancing in the Kursk Region, liberating areas that were under the control of the militants. The dynamic is good,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters today.

The Ukrainians are being routed on the northern front now, but the government in Kyiv refuses to acknowledge how weak their bargaining position has become.

Earlier today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy boldly declared that his government will never "recognize any occupied territories as Russia's"…

On Wednesday President Zelensky shut the door on territorial concessions, awkwardly at a moment Ukraine has just agreed to a US plan for a 30-day ceasefire intended to pave the way for extended peace negotiations. An initial statement from the Kremlin said that Putin likely to eventually agree to truce but with own terms as Moscow "studies" the Trump-sponsored proposal hammered out during the Tuesday Jeddah talks.

"We are fighting for our independence. Therefore, we will not recognize any occupied territories as Russia's. This is a fact," Zelensky said in the fresh comments.

"Our people have fought for this, our heroes died. How many injured, how many passed. No one will forget about it… This is the most important red line. We will not let anyone forget about this crime against Ukraine."

But Russia's red line in any near-future negotiations will be to demand recognition of the Russian Federations sovereign control over the four easter territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions – which President Putin has previously referred to as "our citizens forever."

How is it going to be possible to bridge that gap?

I have no idea.

In the end, I just don't see how a permanent peace deal will happen.

But if both sides could at least agree to a temporary ceasefire, that would give us some breathing room to talk.

So much is riding on these negotiations.

If they ultimately fail, both sides are likely to escalate matters even more in an attempt to gain leverage.

Could that potentially include western troops on the ground in Ukraine?

CBS News is reporting that hundreds of American "volunteers" are already there…

It's believed that hundreds of American volunteers, many of them U.S. veterans, have signed up to serve with Ukraine's army. For some of them, the U.S. administration's recent actions and rhetoric — particularly remarks by Mr. Trump that echoed Kremlin talking points, suggesting the war is Kyiv's fault and that Zelenskyy is an illegitimate leader — have not sat well.

We are at a crossroads.

We either make peace with the Russians, or we go down a road that leads to the unthinkable.

Which will we choose?

If the Russians ultimately determine that nuclear war is inevitable, they will strike first, and there will be no warning."