Russia is returning warships to the Mediterranean Sea after NATO said that its fleet was absent from the area
Kyiv • UNN
A Russian naval group including the Admiral Levchenko is heading to the Mediterranean Sea. Its arrival is expected after NATO said that the Russian fleet was absent from the region.
A Russian naval group is heading to the Mediterranean and is expected to pass Gibraltar around August 27. It includes the large anti-submarine warfare ship "Admiral Levchenko." Defense Express reported this on August 26, citing data from Russian Forces Spotter and maritime traffic tracking, UNN writes.
Details
The tanker "General Skobelev," the support vessel "Akademik Pashin," and the Ro-Ro-type cargo ship "Sparta" are heading to the Mediterranean together with the "Admiral Levchenko." The naval group was spotted off the coast of Spain.
The officially stated destination port for the "Sparta" is Port Said in Egypt. At the same time, Defense Express notes that Russia usually lists this port as the destination for vessels that are actually heading to the Russian naval base in Tartus, Syria.
The "Sparta" was previously spotted in Tartus in January 2025. At that time, together with the "Sparta II," it participated in removing Russian military equipment and weapons from Syria. The exact purpose of the vessel's current voyage is currently unknown.
Russia is returning its ships after a two-month pause
The arrival of the Russian naval group effectively coincided with a statement by NATO's Allied Maritime Command that Russia has no military presence in the Mediterranean for the first time in ten years. Russian ships left the region on June 30, when the frigate "Admiral Kasatonov" and the replenishment tanker "Akademik Pashin" departed the Mediterranean.
Thus, the pause in the permanent presence of Russian warships in the region may last only about two months. At the same time, the repeated use of the "Akademik Pashin" may indicate Russia's limited capabilities for supporting long-range naval deployments.