Two days before Trump inauguration, UK tests tunnel to France: Report
Britain's military sent tanks down the tunnel linking the country to France to see if the route could be effectively used to send troops to Europe just as Donald Trump was preparing to assume office.
The test was conducted on Wednesday, when five tanks were sent into the 30-mile Channel Tunnel, known as Chunnel, NBC News reported Sunday.
The test was apparently aimed at assessing the feasibility of deployment through the tunnel to Eastern Europe to confront Russia.
The British Ministry of Defense said the test had been planned long ago, suggesting that its timing had nothing to do with the onset of Trump’s presidency, following an inauguration ceremony on Friday.
The test could serve as a warning signal to the Trump administration about how serious the Europeans consider the “Russian aggression” to be.
Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, have been exchanging praise for one another since the New York billionaire and former reality TV star started campaigning for the 2016 presidential election.
The new American commander-in-chief has on several occasions called for better ties with Moscow, causing concern among some of the US allies especially in Europe.
Apart from that, the new president is not a big fan of US alliances, including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
This is while the West considers Russia to be a threat to Eastern Europe.
Russia-West ties have been strained since Crimea joined Russia in a referendum in March 2014.
Crimean people voted to join Russia after rejecting the Western-backed government that took power in Kiev in February 2014.
Yemeni armed forces strike British oil tanker in Red Sea
UK suspends legal assessments of Israeli violations in Gaza
70,000 pro-Palestine people in UK urge London to end arms exports to Israel
Yemeni armed forces strike British oil tanker in Red Sea
VIDEO | Press TV's news headlines
VIDEO | American, Israeli rabbis call for ceasefire during protest near Gaza
Iran calls for enhanced defense cooperation with Russia
US campus crackdown: 500 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested
VIDEO | Yemenis rally in Sana'a in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza
VIDEO | Jordanians march after Friday prayers in support of Palestinians
Far-right Israeli minister Ben-Gvir injured
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
