US aircraft carrier docks in Norway

OSLO/MOSCOW — The world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, sailed into Oslo on Wednesday, a first for such a ship of the United States, in a show of NATO force at a time of heightened tensions between NATO and Russia over the conflict in Ukraine.

Russia's embassy in Norway has criticized the planned visit as an "illogical and harmful" show of force.

"There are no questions in the (Arctic) north that require a military solution, nor topics where outside intervention is needed," the embassy said on Tuesday.

"Considering that it is admitted in Oslo that Russia poses no direct military threat to Norway, such demonstrations of power appear illogical and harmful."

The 337-meter ship and its crew will be conducting training exercises with the Norwegian armed forces along the country's coast in the coming days, the Norwegian military said.

The first-in-class aircraft carrier is a nuclear-powered ship with a displacement of more than 100,000 metric tons.

"This visit is an important signal of the close bilateral relationship between the US and Norway and a signal of the credibility of collective defense and deterrence," said Jonny Karlsen, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Joint Headquarters, the operational command center of the military.

Norwegian media reported the aircraft carrier would sail north of the Arctic Circle. Karlsen declined to comment on the reports.

Largest gas supplier

NATO member Norway shares a border with Russia in the Arctic. Last year, it became Europe's largest gas supplier after a drop in Russian gas flows.

The Norwegian military and NATO allies have been patrolling around offshore oil and gas platforms since fall, following explosions on the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea.

Meanwhile, a member of Russia's Security Council warned on Tuesday that the more destructive the weapons that the West supplied to Ukraine, the higher the risk of "nuclear apocalypse".

Russia has repeatedly said the West is engaged in a proxy war with Russia over Ukraine that could escalate into a much bigger conflict.

The US has committed $37 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since Russia started its special military operation in February last year.

US President Joe Biden told fellow G7 leaders last week that he backed a joint effort with allies to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, a senior US official said, though there is no commitment as yet to supply the jets themselves.

Agencies - Xinhua