More than 20 Russian warships leave for exercises in the Black Sea amid rising Ukraine tensions

Russia is holding simultaneous drills in the Barents and Baltic Seas, amping up its military presence near Ukraine

A fleet of 20 Russian warships has departed from naval bases for drills in the Black Sea, as tensions continue to mount between Moscow and Ukraine.

“The training exercise was aimed at practising the crews’ operations in the event of simultaneous threats both from the air and from the sea,” the Russian defence ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

The large-scale naval group, comprising frigates, patrol ships, missile ships, landing ships, anti-submarine ships and minesweepers, left from their naval bases in Sevastopol and Novorossiysk for drills in the waters of the Black Sea, situated at the southeastern extremity of Europe.

The Russian defence ministry said Black Sea drills included communications exercises, manoeuvring in areas of intensive maritime navigation, and the organisation of air defences.

Russia appears to be flexing its muscles by holding large-scale drills at a time when Ukraine has accused it of amassing hundreds of thousands of troops on the Ukraine border, a move the western allies of Kiev are condemning as signs pointing to a potential war.

Videos published by the defence ministry showed warships such as the new Kalibr cruise missile-armed Admiral Essen frigate and the Buyan-class Ingushetia sailing alongside anti-submarine warships and other vessels.

Meanwhile, also on Wednesday, the Russian Northern Fleet departed its base for drills in the Barents Sea with the Arctic expeditionary task force. The Barents Sea manoeuvres will include Russia’s Marshal Ustinov missile cruiser, the frigate Admiral Kasatonov and the large anti-submarine warfare ship Vice-Admiral Kulakov, the Northern Fleet’s press office said.

A total of 1,200 sailors and officers with more than 140 pieces of military equipment and up to 30 warships, submarines and supply vessels will take part in the drills in the Barents Sea.

The Russian Northern Fleet departs its base for drills

The Black Sea and Barents Sea drills come after more than 20 warships performed manoeuvres in the Baltic Sea on Monday. The ships from Russia’s Baltic Fleet carried out anti-submarine, air defence and mine-sweeping tasks.

Even as Moscow has denied it is planning an assault on Ukraine, the military muscle-flexing continues, reflecting an attempt by the Kremlin to halt decades of Nato expansion after the end of the Cold War.

At talks with the US in Geneva last week, Russia said it wanted assurances Ukraine would not be allowed to join Nato and that Nato resources would stop diverting resources to eastern Europe.

The exercises are part of Russia’s wider 2022 full navy exercises that are being held in January and February this year under the command of its naval commander-in-chief Admiral Nikolai Evmenov, reported TASS.