Russian military thanks Latvian counterparts for advertising Russian Navy
MOSCOW. Nov 24 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Defense Ministry used its official Facebook and Twitter accounts to thank Latvian counterparts for continuing an active PR campaign for the Russian Navy.
"The Latvian media have taken over their Swedish colleagues' initiative and released a sensational story about a Russian submarine's emergence in the Baltic Sea. We offer our thanks for continuing an active PR campaign for the Russian Navy," says the Russian Defense Ministry's statement, circulated through social media on Monday.
"Some classified document was born in the corridors of the Latvian Defense Ministry, claiming that the Baltic Sea entirely belongs to Latvia and that the emergence of Russian naval ships and naval ships of other countries is seen as a threat to Latvia," the posting says.
"It is easy to predict that in the future Latvia will also be angered by boat races, practiced by cadets of the Kaliningrad Naval Institute, or by the Baltic warships' shifting from one pier to another at their home base in Baltiisk. It is not ruled out, either, that the Latvian partners will be angered soon by overly bright Russian sea lights, or by the sound of the whistle accompanying ceremonies of hoisting the St.Andrew's flag in Baltic Fleet units and formations," it says.
"It looks like the Latvian colleagues find far more interesting to advertise the daily routine of the Russian Navy than their military achievements. We can only thank Latvian representatives and mass media for such careful attention," it says.
The Latvian Defense Ministry earlier said, "in the wake of Swedish reports, that a Russian submarine was detected 27 miles off the Latvian territorial waters in the Baltic Sea on November 22." "To quote the Latvian military, it was a Kilo-class submarine to NATO reporting standards, to which Russia's Project 636 Warshavyanka and Project 877 Paltus submarines are referred. Representatives of the Latvian Defense Ministry claimed that since the incident occurred beyond the Latvian territorial waters, no search would be launched for the mysterious submarine," the Russian Defense Ministry said.
"The Swedish naval commanders made similar statements on November 19, claiming that a foreign, presumably Russian, submarine was noticed in the waters off Stockholm, while the Swedish mass media hastened to announce that the mysterious submarine was broadcasting messages on a frequency, normally used by Russian naval crews in emergencies. The story had an embarrassing end for Sweden," the posting says.
Sd
(Our editorial staff can be reached at eng.editors@interfax.ru)
.