Russian warship about to end anti-piracy mission in Gulf of Aden
SEVEROMORSK. April 2 (Interfax-AVN) - A North Fleet unit led by the large anti-sub ship Severomorsk is finalizing an anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden and preparing to pass through the Suez Canal, North Fleet representative Capt. 2nd Class Yevgeny Kirillov told Interfax-AVN on Tuesday.
"The day before the Severomorsk accomplished the escorting of the St. Andrew vessel of the Liberian commercial fleet. The ships are training in the Red Sea now. They are practicing a ship-to-ship liquid cargo transfer and joint maneuvering and preparing to pass through the Suez Canal," Kirillov said.
The Severomorsk has escorted 16 ships flying the flags of Russia, Greece, Panama, Liberia, Thailand, the Marshall Islands, India, Tuvalu, Egypt and St. Vincent and the Grenadines during its anti-piracy watch, Kirillov said. The Russian ice-breaking ship Vitus Bering was the first ship escorted by the North Fleet sailors, he said.
The crew also participated in a large-scale naval exercise of Russia in the Mediterranean Sea and an international anti-piracy drill together with the NATO ship San Marco.