(Tribune News Service) — Russian naval vessels practiced hitting targets with long-distance missiles in simulated drills in the Atlantic Ocean ahead of a planned visit to Cuba.

The nuclear-powered Kazan submarine and Admiral Gorshkov frigate, which carries hypersonic Zircon missiles, staged the computer drills with high-precision weapons against “naval groups of a mock enemy” over a distance of 373 miles, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said in a statement Tuesday.

The vessels are due to arrive in Cuba on Wednesday, Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news service reported, citing Russian Navy chief Alexander Moiseyev.

None of the Russian vessels is carrying nuclear weapons and they pose no threat to the region, the Cuban Foreign Ministry said on its website June 6. The visit to Havana from June 12-17 is in line with the historically friendly relations between Cuba and Russia, it said.

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