Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced that Russia would deploy missiles inside Europe in a speech on Wednesday clearly planned to coincide with the conclusion of the U.S. election.

Speaking just hours after Barack Obama was elected as the next U.S. president, Medvedev said Russia would position the new SS-26 Stone, or Iskander, short-range ballistic missile next to the Polish border in its Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad, ostensibly to counter the planned U.S. missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic.

The Iskander missile is capable of evasive maneuvering toward the end of its flight, making it hard to intercept. It also has the capacity to carry nuclear warheads, though no nuclear warheads appear to have been designed to go with the missile.

Medvedev also announced that Russia would use electronic warfare to try to counter the U.S. shield, and that it would not be removing three missile units stationed in central Russia as had been planned.

The timing of the announcement was deliberate; Medvedev was scheduled to give it earlier, but he postponed it without giving any reason. His threat was clearly intended to show the United States that Russia does not fear it. When Ronald Reagan was inaugurated, Iran released its hostages. Now that Barack Obama has been elected, Russia’s first act is to defy the U.S.

Medvedev’s threat, however, is likely an empty one. The current status of the Iskander missile program is unclear. According to analysts, all of Russia’s Iskander missiles are deployed near the Georgian border, and it probably won’t move them. Russia may be in the process of manufacturing more, but this will take time.

Despite the threat’s symbolic nature, Poland and Lithuania, which both border Kaliningrad, will be scared. Already threatened by Russia, the prospect of having very accurate short-range nukes on their borders, even if unlikely in the short term, will just add to their concerns. The announcement also reflects the U.S.’s weakness. Russia does not fear America.

Events like this make it very clear that Europe cannot rely on the U.S. for protection. If it wants to be safe from Russia, it must create a superpower of its own. The rise of Russia is spurring Europe to do just that. For more information, see our article “Russia: Triggering Europe to Unite.”