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http://www.worldtribune.com/
Officials said the
navies of Russia and Syria were enhancing cooperation over the
last year. They said Moscow was modernizing naval facilities in
Syria's port of Latakia and Tartous to accommodate Russian Navy
warships.
"I am certain that we will witness new and significant progress
in our bilateral cooperation in the near future," Russian
ambassador to Syria, Sergei Kirpichenko, said.
On April 14, Kirpichenko welcomed the arrival of the Russian
Navy's nuclear-powered missile cruiser, Pyotr Veliky, to Tartous.
Russia has modernized Tartous and deploys 50 naval officers to
maintain and supply warships that operate in the Mediterranean.
"The Pyotr Veliky's visit to the Syrian port of Tartus is a
symbolic event," Kirpichenko said. "It is a continuation of our
historic ties with Syria that serves as a guarantee of our
future cooperation not only in the naval sphere but also in
other areas."
Officials said a large Syrian Navy delegation visited Pyotr
Veliky. Pyotr Veliky has been deemed the flagship of Russia's
Northern Fleet and was headed for an exercise in the Indian Ocan.
In September 2008, the Kremlin launched negotiations with the
regime of President Bashar Assad to convert Tartous into a
permanent Russian Navy base. Officials said Moscow also offered
to modernize the Syrian Navy port at Latakia.
Tartous was said to have been expanded to accommodate large
Russian warships. Officials said Tartous, with three berthing
floats, could handle up to a dozen naval vessels.
Officials said the Russian Navy regards Syria as a vital base
for operations in the Mediterranean and surrounding regions.
They said Moscow has been training the Syrian Navy as part of
the strategic arrangement.
"According to the Russian Navy, the naval base in Syria
significantly boosts Russia's operational capability in the
region because the warships based there are capable of reaching
the Red Sea through the Suez Canal and the Atlantic through the
Strait of Gibraltar in a matter of days," the Moscow-based RIA
Novosti news agency said.
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