MURMANSK, March 20 (Itar-Tass) – The large submarine chaser Severomorsk of the Russian Northern Fleet is leading the fourth convoy of civilian ships through the security corridor across the Gulf of Aden. The convoy was formed at the destination point in the Red Sea and included two bulk carriers under the flags of Egypt and Panama, as well as a merchant ship under the flag of Saint Vincent and Grenadines, the headquarters of the Russian Northern Fleet told Itar-Tass on Wednesday.
The Severomorsk crew is to convoy the foreign ships across the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden to the destination point in the western part of the Arabian Sea on the route at a distance of over 1,000 nautical miles. She earlier ensured a safe convoy of the Russian icebreaker Vitus Bering and 11 ships under the flags of Greece, Panama, Liberia, Thailand, the Marshall Islands, India and Tuvalu.
The Severomorsk set out from the main base of the Northern Fleet on December 18, 2012. For the time of a long mission she sailed over 15,000 nautical miles. The crew was participating in large-scale naval exercises of the Russian Navy in the Mediterranean Sea and international anti-piracy exercises with a NATO warship.