SecDef tours Ga. nuclear sub base

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Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is praising the Navy's ballistic missile-armed submarines as an important deterrent against nuclear war.

Gates took a quick tour of the submarine USS Rhode Island during a stop Friday at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in southern Georgia.

Gates said the Trident nuclear submarines, which hide undetected beneath the ocean armed with ballistic missiles, discourage potential enemies from attacking the U.S. because they would face "a heavy price to pay."

Kings Bay in St. Marys is the Navy's only East Coast base for nuclear-armed submarines.

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(AP)