The War Zone – It is believed that this iconic boat will split its time between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic, while avoiding the relatively cramped spaces of the Black Sea.

(Thanks to Alain)

Maritime Executive – Ukraine’s military intelligence agency claims that Russia is encountering difficulties in gaining access to its longtime naval base in Tartus, where it appears to have staged large quantities of military equipment for outward shipment. 

(Thanks to Alain)

The Barents Observer – Putin has expressed great ambitions for the Northern Sea Route, but his plans are far from materialization.

The Barents Observer – While Russia is midway into its nuclear submarine modernisation program with the new 4th generation ballistic missile carriers of the Borei-class, priority is also given to keep afloat the Soviet-era Delta-IV class vessels deployed with the Northern Fleet. 

The Barents Observer – A key part of combat training for the Russian navy’s new frigates in 2025 will be long-distance sailings. In Severomorsk, the Admiral Gorshkov was welcomed home after a voyage that lasted 226 days.

Naval News – As almost every year, December 2024 brought interesting news about the Russian Navy. In keeping with “good Soviet tradition,” by the end of each year Russian shipyards sought to complete important stages of new shipbuilding. 2024, despite the devastating Russian war in Ukraine, was an interesting and fruitful year for the Kremlin’s naval forces in this regard.

Naval News – The Russian Navy is significantly weakened in the Mediterranean. The collapse of the Assad regime in Syria has denied them their permanent base there. And with it, their ability to maintain conventional submarines there for any length of time. The only boat known to be there has just left, leaving no Russian submarines in the Mediterranean.

War on the Rocks – Russia wields a formidable capability to target NATO’s undersea infrastructure in critical regions such as the Baltic, Barents, and North Seas, as well as across the world’s oceans: its “research” vessels. These are ostensibly civilian ships used for scientific exploration that double as intelligence-gathering platforms. Equipped with advanced surveillance technology, these ships often operate near critical undersea infrastructure, raising concerns about covert espionage and sabotage capabilities under the guise of academic study.

USNI News – The Russian Navy accepted the fifth in a class of advanced nuclear attack submarines that is set to be based near Norway, Moscow announced last week.

BMPD – On December 28, 2024, a solemn ceremony of raising the national flag was held in St. Petersburg at JSC “Baltic Plant” (part of JSC “United Shipbuilding Corporation” – USC) on the universal nuclear icebreaker “Yakutia” of project 22220 (LK-60Ya), built by order of FSUE “Atomflot”. This is the fourth nuclear icebreaker of Project 22220.

(In Russian)

(Thanks to Alain)

gCaptain – The Admiralty Shipyards in Saint Petersburg launched the second armed Arctic icebreaker for Russia’s Navy. Upon commissioning the Nikolay Zubov will become part of the country’s Northern Fleet Kola division. The Arc7 ice-class will allow the patrol ship to break through up to 1.7 meters of ice ensuring year-round access to Russia’s Arctic waters.

(Thanks to Alain)

The War Zone – Ukrainian intel claims the cargo ship was headed to Syria to take Russian materiel out of the country, but Moscow says otherwise.

Army Recognition – According to information published by Russian sources on December 6, 2024, the Russian Navy is preparing to enhance its underwater warfare capabilities with the addition of the Arkhangelsk, a multipurpose nuclear-powered submarine, slated for delivery in the summer of 2025. This submarine, part of the modernized Project 885M Yasen-M class, is being constructed by Sevmash, a division of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC).

(Thanks to Alain)

Reuters – Russia is disrupting mobile communications and ship-tracking data across the Baltic Sea, endangering vessels and energy supplies to test how Western powers will respond, a Polish admiral overseeing the area said.

(Thanks to Alain)

USNI News – New satellite photos from the Tartus naval base on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea show Russian Navy ships anchored off the coast of Syria after abandoning Moscow’s only overseas naval base. Photos also show the destruction of Syrian Navy missile boats at the in Latakia.

The War Zone – recent drill by the Russian Armed Forces in the Mediterranean has provided us with a more detailed view of the shadowy Zircon hypersonic missile, a weapon that has only been glimpsed in the past and shown up in the form of fragments after being combat tested in Ukraine.

USNI News – Russian Navy Improved Kilo class submarine RFS Ufa (B-588) is now operating in the East China Sea following a passage between Japanese islands in the southwest region in order to exit the Philippine Sea and enter the South China Sea.

Naval News – The Russian Navy’s base at Tartus in Syria is crucial to its support of the Assad regime, and its ambitions on the world stage. The dramatic shift in the front lines in Syria now puts the base at risk. There are indications that Russia may be evacuating its naval vessels.

UK Defence Journal – The Defence Committee discussed escalating concerns over undersea cable security in the Baltic Sea and recent sightings of the Russian spy ship Yantar in UK waters during its latest session.

Naval News – The Russian Navy, though still a serious concern for NATO, shows signs of decline reminiscent of the 1990s. Expensive reconstruction projects are struggling. Efforts to revive major warships, like the nuclear-powered battle cruiser Admiral Nakhimov, seem driven more by national pride than strategic value.

The Guardian – A Russian spy ship has been escorted out of the Irish Sea after it entered Irish-controlled waters and patrolled an area containing critical energy and internet submarine pipelines and cables.

BBC – The mystery as to why a beluga whale appeared off the coast of Norway wearing a harness may finally have been solved.

USNI News – U.S., Allies Wrestle with an Unpredictable Kremlin as the Arctic Grows More Complex.

MarineLink – Russia has begun designing nuclear-powered submarines to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Arctic to Asia to try to nearly halve the journey time along the Northern Sea Route (NSR), a senior state official has said.

(Thanks to Alain)

Bulgarian Military – The last of the Russian Navy’s six Project 636.3 submarines for the Pacific Fleet, Yakutsk, was launched today, October 11. Yakutsk is of the Varshavyanka class, and this class already includes the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Volkhov, Magadan, Ufa, and Mozhaisk submarines. They were all built at Admiralty Shipyards JSC. 

(Thanks to Alain)