THE KURSK SUBSCRIBE: CAUSES, RESCUE ATTEMPTS AND CRITICISM BY PUTIN
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Anyone who remembers back to August 2000 remembers the drama in the sea off northern Russia and northern Norway. An Oscar II-class nuclear-powered submarine. The name of the submarine was Kursk. This is one of the largest submarines in Russia at the time. All 118 people on board died. Behind them were letters they wrote to their loved ones while waiting for their deaths on the seabed of the Barents Sea. The truth is that many of them could have been saved if the Russian Navy had taken action earlier and if President Putin had not hesitated for so long to ask for help from Norway and the UK.
What happened to Kursk
The date of the accident is August 12, 2000. It is the largest naval exercise in the Barents Sea for a very long time. Kursk was a pride of the Russian Navy. A gigantic large submarine. Naturally, Kursk was part of the exercise. On other surface vessels involved in the exercise, the crew first felt an explosion, then another. This one is even more powerful than the first. Reports from the crew of these boats to the Russian Navy came quickly.
But the management here did not realize that it was an accident. It was not until 6 hours after the accident that the search for Kursk began. It took another 16 hours to locate the submarine, which was lying at a depth of 108 meters. Norway and the UK have a great deal of expertise in diving and missions far out at sea in harsh weather conditions. Both countries are world leaders in the field, due to the oil activity in the North Sea.
In an official investigation after the accident, it was concluded that a bad weld in one of the torpedoes had left dust in the torpedo tube. The first caused an explosion. This explosion caused other torpedoes to also explode shortly afterwards. This conclusion was heavily criticized and refuted by the manufacturer of the torpedoes.
Unsuccessful rescue attempts
The Russian Navy wanted to carry out the rescue themselves. This was to be fateful. Over the next four days, repeated attempts to attach different types of diving bells to Kursk were unsuccessful. In the meantime, Norwegian diving vessels had moved north to be ready if they were asked for assistance.
After 5 days of unsuccessful attempts at salvage by the Russian Navy, President Putin finally contacted a Norwegian and a British diving ship. The Russian Navy manipulated and lied about the rescue operation. For the longest time, they did not want any help from abroad. After two days, Norwegian and British divers managed to open a hatch at Kursk. But it was too late. None of the 118 survived the accident.
The farewell letters from Kursk
Letters were found, written by the crew of the Kursk. Letters to their wives and loved ones. A farewell letter from the bottom of the Barents Sea.
The letters show that several of the crew are alive for a long time. No one knows how many people could have been saved if Putin had accepted the aid earlier. Perhaps the Russian navy knows, but is keeping the secret.
Criticism of Putin
Putin had recently become president of Russia. At the time of the accident, he was at his country house in Sochi. Putin is kept informed of the incident through the navy. The navy always said that they were in control of the situation and that there was no reason to accept Russian help. The navy also stated that the accident was caused by a submarine from a NATO country, which was later denied by their own investigation. Receiving help from abroad was not necessary, according to the information provided to the president.
Putin faced strong criticism for his handling of the accident. Partly because he chose to continue his summer vacation by the Black Sea and partly because of his long hesitation to accept help from abroad.
A meeting is held between family members of the dead sailors and President Putin. Only the state-run Russian TV channel RTR was allowed to attend the meeting. This channel only conveyed Putin’s speech to the bereaved. However, RTR had borrowed equipment from a German TV team. Everything at the meeting is filmed. This was left in the recording. These show, among other things, that a mother of one of the crew asked Putin some emotional questions. A nurse then put a syringe through her clothes to anesthetize her. She loses the ability to speak and is carried out. Criticism of Putin should clearly not take place in public.
Sources:
Soaked letter tells last hours of `Kursk’ crew – The Irish Times