Six Russian amphibious assault ships arrive at Syria's Tartus
February 5, 2022, 4:28 pm

Six Russian amphibious assault ships arrive at Syria's Tartus

Flag of Russia-Russian navy/Pixabay

The Asharq Al-Awsat reported, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that six amphibious assault ships of the Russian Northern and Baltic Fleet had arrived at the Russian Navy's logistics center in Tartus, western Syria.

In a statement, the ministry's press office said that the naval task force is made up of the large amphibious assault ships Pyotr Morgunov, Georgy Pobedonosets, Olenegorsky Gornyak, Korolyov, Minsk, and Kaliningrad.

The ministry said that the fleet completed its transit around Europe and arrived in the eastern Mediterranean as part of the drills under Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Nikolay Yevmenov.

The ships have traveled more than 6000 nautical miles, and the vessels are currently anchored in the port of Tartus, on the coast of Syria, where they supply fuel, drinking water, and foodstuffs.

Moscow and Damascus signed an agreement on expanding the Russian war fleet's material and technical supply center in Tartus.

The agreement allows the presence of 11 warships, including nuclear ones, for 49 years, with the possibility of automatic renewal for 25 years.

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The agreement, which entered into effect on January 18, 2017, stipulates that Russia will protect the supply center of its fleet in the sea and the air, and Syria will defend the center from land.

The document stipulates that the Syrian side will hand over to Russia lands and waters in Tartus for free use throughout the term of the agreement and real estate that has not been officially announced.

A Russian military source at the Russian Hmeimim military base revealed that the Russian military police are conducting regular patrols in and around the ports of Latakia and Tartus to protect them from any attacks that terrorist groups may carry out.

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Sputnik news agency quoted a Russian military source saying that the Russian reconnaissance aircrafts launched their activities in monitoring the various sections and stations of the Latakia port completely and around the clock.

The Russian forces continue to patrol the port and its nearby area.

The Russian "Rus Vesna" website reported last Monday that the Russian military police conducts several patrols inside the port of Latakia to prevent new attacks.

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The measure is the first of its kind in the vicinity of the port used by Iran to transport its imports to Syria, under an agreement that allows regular freight between Bandar Abbas port and Lattakia port.

According to state-owned Syrian media, in recent weeks, the vicinity of Latakia port was attacked twice, and the Syrian air defenses intercepted the strikes.

Source: aawsat

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.