MURMANSK, June 6. /TASS/. Russia’s large anti-submarine warfare ship Severomorsk has accomplished long-distance voyage tasks and arrived at the Northern Fleet’s main base, the Fleet’s press office reported on Tuesday.
"A ceremony was held at the Northern Fleet’s main base today to welcome the large anti-submarine warfare ship Severomorsk, which had accomplished the tasks of a long-distance voyage mission that lasted about eight months," the press office said in a statement.
As Northern Fleet Commander Vice-Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov said at the ceremony of welcoming the destroyer’s crew, the large anti-submarine warfare ship’s long-distance voyage is unique both by the scope of missions accomplished and by geographical routes.
"During the long-distance voyage, the Severomorsk crew was accomplishing the combat missions of fighting international terrorism in the Syrian Arab Republic, was counteracting piracy and participating in international drills, sailing around the African continent," the Northern Fleet’s press office quoted Yevmenov as saying.
The voyage of a group of Russian warships started on October 15, 2016. The Severomorsk crew was performing missions for three months as part of a naval group led by the heavy aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov in the Mediterranean Sea. In mid-January, the Severomorsk set off for a long voyage. The Russian sailors passed through the Suez Canal to sail into the Red Sea and then into the Indian Ocean.
The anti-submarine destroyer’s crew represented the Russian Navy in the Aman-2017 naval exercises held in the Arabian Sea and at the Pakistani Navy’s coastal base. After that, the Russian warship sailed around the African continent, visiting 10 ports in Africa and Asia: Salalah (Oman), Karachi (Pakistan), Victoria (Seychelles), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Pemba (Mozambique), Cape Town (South Africa), Walvis Bay (Namibia), Luanda (Angola), Malabo (Equatorial Guinea) and Praia (Cabo Verde).
During their voyage in distant waters, the Russian sailors made business calls at the ports of Limassol (Cyprus), Tartus (Syria) and Lisbon (Portugal).
Overall, Russia’s large anti-submarine warfare ship Severomorsk covered a distance of more than 40,000 nautical miles.