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The Russian Defence Ministry has denied reports that Moscow is planning to set up its first new overseas naval bases, after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Earlier, it had emerged that a Russian navy chief, Viktor Chirkov, reportedly claimed that Cuba , Vietnam and the Seychelles were being considered as possible sites. "It's true that we are continuing work on providing the navy with bases outside the Russian Federation ," the BBC quoted Chirkov, as saying, in an interview. According to the report, he added that Moscow was "working out the issue of creating sites for material and technical support on the territory of Cuba , the Seychelles and Vietnam ". However, the defence ministry later insisted that Chirkov had said no such thing, and that the subject had not been broached during the interview. "Issues concerning international relations are not part of the responsibilities of the commander-in-chief of the navy," the ministry said in a statement posted on its website. It added that the reported remarks were a "fantasy of their author, who preferred to prioritise sensationalism above competency and professional ethics". The report revealed that a lack of money after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 led to the closure of most Russian bases abroad, and currently it has bases only in Ukraine and Syria.

Russia denies reports of opening overseas naval bases in Vietnam, Cuba