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Russia’s Black Sea Fleet Plans Force Build-Up At Novorossiysk |
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Published by Eurasian Monitor
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Monday, 06 August 2007 |
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Russia’s Black Sea Fleet Plans Force Build-Up At Novorossiysk “Admiral Vladimir Masorin, commander-in-chief of Russia’s naval forces, announced ambitious plans to expand the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s forces and missions during his just-completed visit to the fleet’s main base at Sevastopol in Ukraine. The plans focus on developing Novorossiysk as a major naval base on Russian territory, retaining Sevastopol (past 2017 if it possible), and restoring the Fleet’s capability to reestablish a presence at least to some degree in the Mediterranean…. According to Masorin, Russia plans to restore a “regular naval presence” in the Eastern Mediterranean. Ships from the Black Sea Fleet would bear the main brunt of that mission, to be reinforced by units from Russia’s Baltic and Northern Fleets on a rotational basis. In follow-up remarks, the Russian Navy’s chief spokesman, Captain Igor Dygalo, defined the goal of “regular naval presence” mainly as “flying the St. Andrew flag” [Russian naval flag] in the eastern Mediterranean. Any Russian squadron operating there would not be a permanent one, but would have to be assembled ad hoc from the Black Sea and other Russian Fleets for each mission. In the short-to-medium term, the capabilities of such a squadron would be a far cry from those of the erstwhile Soviet Navy’s squadron in the Eastern Mediterranean. Russia would conduct these missions on a national basis, separate from NATO’s Active Endeavor Operation, in which Russia participates symbolically. Masorin attended in Sevastopol the departure ceremony of the escort ship Ladnyi to join this NATO operation. In remarks calculated to differentiate among NATO countries, Masorin praised cooperation with the Turkish Navy -- “closer than with any navy in the world, a relationship that must be further developed and perfected.” He termed Turkey a “serious regional leader” in naval and other terms. Such remarks reflect Russia’s comfort with a Turkish-Russian naval condominium in the Black Sea. However, Russia’s buildup plans might induce second thoughts in Turkey about this relationship if the naval balance tips in Russia’s favor….”
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