Russia’s Navy has commenced planned drills involving all but one of its fleets and the vast majority of its warships, the defense ministry announced on Tuesday.
“Units and formations of the Russian Navy have started scheduled exercises in the operational zones of the Northern, Pacific, and Baltic Fleets, as well as in the area of responsibility of the Caspian Flotilla,” stated the Defense Ministry.
The multi-day drills notably exclude the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet, which has suffered significant losses due to Ukrainian attacks around the annexed Crimean peninsula since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion.
Kyiv claims its attacks have incapacitated one-third of Russia’s Black Sea warships since the invasion began in February 2022, as it seeks to protect its shipping routes and prevent sea-based attacks. The Black Sea Fleet commander was quietly replaced earlier this year.
Russia’s latest naval exercises involve approximately 20,000 servicemen and 300 surface ships, submarines, and support vessels, according to the defense ministry’s statement on Tuesday.
“Over the next several days, the ships’ crews, naval aviation units, and coastal troops will perform more than 300 combat exercises with the practical use of weapons,” the statement said.
A video accompanying the military’s statement showed warships passing the Russky Bridge in Russia’s Far East port of Vladivostok, crews firing naval artillery, and officers reporting to their superiors from command posts.
“The main purpose of the exercise is to test the actions of the Navy’s military control bodies at all levels, as well as the readiness of the crews of ships, naval aviation units, and coastal troops of the Russian Navy to fulfill their tasks as intended,” the military said.
The drills come two days after President Vladimir Putin oversaw a Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg, during which he threatened to restart the production of intermediate-range nuclear weapons if the United States deploys missiles in Germany or elsewhere in Europe.
