Nuclear missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky visits Cypriot port Limassol
SEVERODVINSK. Dec 27 (Interfax-AVN) - The North Fleet's heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky on a Mediterranean mission within a Russian naval group has arrived at the Cypriot port of Limassol on a business visit, North Fleet spokesman Capt. 1st Rank Vadim Serga told Interfax-AVN on Friday.
"The visit of the heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky to Limassol is the first business visit of a Russian nuclear-powered warship in the history of international cooperation between Russia and the Republic of Cyprus. Russian Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus Stanislav Osadchy will visit the Russian ship anchored in the foreign port," Serga said.
The ship will replenish food reserves and the sailors will go on sightseeing tours and rest on the beach, he said.
Limassol is the first foreign port visited by the crew of the Russian missile cruiser, which has been on mission for more than two months, Serga said.
The Pyotr Veliky departed from Severomorsk, the main base of the North Fleet, on October 22, 2013. The operative staff of the combined unit of the North, Black Sea, Baltic and Pacific fleets is based onboard the cruiser. The ship has covered about 8,000 nautical miles since the beginning of its voyage.
The Pyotr Veliky is accomplishing its mission on the orders from the Russian Defense Ministry to resume the regular presence of Russian warships in strategic areas of the World Ocean. The mission will last for several months.
