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| International |
| Russia to send navy to Arabian Sea: report |
| 2003-04-02 |
| Russia is likely to send its navy to the Arabian Sea near the Gulf region where the United States is leading a war against Iraq, the newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta reports. Russian navy officials had earlier announced that at least two fleets — the Pacific and the Black Sea, would stage exercises in the Indian Ocean next month. However, there had previously been no mention of the Arabian Sea, which is on the Indian Ocean's northern tip and washes the shores of India, Iran, Oman and Yemen. The newspaper, which has developed a reputation for its good military ties, reported that Black Sea fleet commander Yevgeny Orlov recently came to Moscow to receive instructions over the mission. The paper said it was likely Commander Orlov received his orders not only from Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov but also from President Vladimir Putin. It was not immediately clear how many vessels would take part in the exercises. An official in the navy press service refused to confirm the report and said more detailed information about the mission might be released at a later date. The Nezavisimaya Gazeta added Russia's strategic forces were put on heightened military alert following the March 20 launch of the war, which Russia has vigorously opposed. The Russian military successfully launched a test intercontinental ballistic missile on March 27, but officials at the time stressed the exercise was not linked to Iraq. Separately, Nezavisimaya Gazeta reported that Chief of Staff General Anatoly Kvashnin was in southern Russia to oversee the largest military exercises staged by the country's strategic air forces in 10 years. "The unprecedented military activity confirms that Moscow is worried about the situation in Iraq," the newspaper wrote. I wonder what this means... |
| Posted by:Tadderly |
| #19 Just how long does it take to row from Oddessa? |
| Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire 2003-04-02 23:06:37 |
| #18 They're probably just hoping it will all be over by the time they get there. Just show the colors a little and then book on home. |
| Posted by: Former Russian Major 2003-04-02 19:03:35 |
| #17 Naw, Alec Baldwin moved out of the U.S. when G.W. was sworn in, just like he promised. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-04-02 18:32:56 |
| #16 Maybe we can get Alec Baldwin to go and look for them, I seen him do it on the tv once, i think it was the hunt for blue november or somethin |
| Posted by: Wills 2003-04-02 17:50:50 |
| #15 The Russian fleet is a disaster, especially the Black Sea Fleet. They've sold most of their best boats still afloat to China and North Korea (most notably the Kiev class helo carriers and that big carrier they were building plus the battlecruiser they almost finished - all of those to China). The rest are old rustbuckets barely capable of staying afloat at dock let alone for a long sea voyage. Even most of the once-vaunted Russian submarine fleet is lying at anchor, unable to put to sea for lack of repairs, radiation belowdecks, or simple lack of crews. I doubt this will be a "serious" show of force or seapower. |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2003-04-02 15:01:22 |
| #14 Looks like they're trying to show the world they can still do force projection... I think I can, I think I can, I think I can... Hope it doesn't blow up in their face. Well, maybe not. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-04-02 13:55:11 |
| #13 What part of the Russian fleet are we talking about? The part that has been rusting away for the last decade; the part that has been sold to Red China or the part that doesn't have crew or fuel. I'll believe it when they get to the Indian Ocean. |
| Posted by: Doug De Bono 2003-04-02 13:29:46 |
| #12 Russia has sold too much modern military equipment to Iraq, hoping the Iraqis would "test" it for them. There are also several billions of dollars in other "sales" that will probably be defaulted on, once the Iraqi government loses this war. If Russia tries to interfere with US military actions in Iraq, it could really lead to a huge disaster. One favorite tactic of the Russians is to place a vessel in the way of our task forces, forcing them to do some wild maneuvering. If that occurs during launch operations, it could make a few American admirals very, very unhappy. Some of the Russian naval equipment is as good as any of ours, and cannot be dismissed easily, especially their "Akula" attack submarines. I'll bet there are now a number of US 688-class attack subs getting re-routing orders to the Arabian Sea. I do NOT like this! |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-04-02 13:08:20 |
| #11 The Russian Navy? You mean they are sending their one fully functioning vessel to the Persian Gulf? |
| Posted by: Jonesy 2003-04-02 12:47:04 |
| #10 AC, You're right on the money. The real question is how many tugboats are part of this fleet movement? I figure one per ship should be just about right. |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2003-04-02 12:13:31 |
| #9 Well the last time a Russian fleet left port on a long cruise they almost got in a war with England by firing on fishing boats in the English channel (they thought they were Japanese torpedo boats) and were sunk at the Battle of Tsushima in 1905. I hardly think they would fare any better against most of the US Navy today. Ignore 'em. |
| Posted by: Chris Smith 2003-04-02 12:10:01 |
| #8 We should set up a betting pool on how far they get before: A. One of them has to be towed in with a major breakdown. B. A crew mutinies, tosses its officers overboard, and puts in to Haifa to request asylum. C. The US Navy has to provide them with fresh water because their condensors have broken down. D. They panic and open fire on an unarmed merchant vessel. E. One of them blows up and sinks for no apparent reason. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2003-04-02 12:05:50 |
| #7 This is not good. They have many assets active in Iraq right now. This is probably an insurance policy. Still, a most unwelcome development. Considering the cost of putting such significant force in the theater, they mean business. Keep it up and they'll get schooled like the rest. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2003-04-02 11:54:14 |
| #6 Does this mean they're paying their Navy? With what? |
| Posted by: Matt 2003-04-02 11:47:40 |
| #5 "The unprecedented military activity confirms that Moscow is worried about the situation in Iraq," the newspaper wrote. What, pray tell, does Russia have to worry about in Iraq? It's not like the U.S. military brass has Russia in its sights after Iraq is taken care of. Iran, NK, and Syria has them beat handily when it comes to being at the head of the line. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-04-02 11:45:23 |
| #4 Who loaned them the money to do this? |
| Posted by: Michael 2003-04-02 11:26:50 |
| #3 Is there any chance the Russian Navy can move that far without sustaining at least one tragedy on a level of the Kursk? |
| Posted by: Matt C 2003-04-02 11:23:04 |
| #2 I doubt it means anything good. |
| Posted by: jrosevear 2003-04-02 11:19:31 |
| #1 Hot diggity dog, the italics worked! Thanks OP! |
| Posted by: Tadderly 2003-04-02 11:15:06 |