MURMANSK, April 25. /TASS/. Naval groups of the Northern Fleet’s Kola Flotilla of All-Arms Forces have wrapped up two-week drills in the Barents Sea, the Fleet’s press office reported on Thursday.

"The Northern Fleet’s naval forces successfully accomplished about 70 combat exercises employing anti-aircraft and cruise missiles, artillery, mines and torpedo weapons, and also depth bombs and grenades," the press office said in a statement.

Up to 20 warships operated simultaneously during two weeks in the Barents Sea. They included the large amphibious assault ships Alexander Otrakovsky and Georgiy Pobedonosets, which transported a separate motorized infantry brigade with the combat hardware by sea and landed the assault force onto rough terrain, and also practiced a set of artillery firings against surface and air targets and performed air defense drills, the statement says.

The naval strike force comprising the small missile ships Aisberg and Rassvet conducted anti-aircraft missile and artillery fire against target missiles, held an air defense exercise, artillery fire against surface targets and practiced destroying a notional enemy’s naval group by live-firing cruise missiles, the statement reads.

The naval search and strike force comprising the small anti-submarine warfare ships Brest, Yunga and Snezhnogorsk searched for, tracked and attacked a notional enemy’s nuclear-powered submarine simulated by the crew of the multi-purpose nuclear-powered sub Obninsk. The anti-submarine warfare personnel thwarted an enemy submarine’s attack and fired torpedoes against it. The torpedo fire was conducted using the blind-loaded ammunition at the Northern Fleet’s combat training ranges, the Fleet’s press office said.

The Kola Flotilla’s minesweepers practiced a full set of countermine warfare measures to provide for the deployment of the Fleet’s forces in the Barents Sea, searching for, sweeping and destroying dummy mines and leading naval groups through the waters studded with mines. The minesweepers also practiced a set of mine-laying operations jointly with the small anti-submarine warfare and large amphibious assault ships in the areas of a notional enemy force’s presence. At various stages of the naval exercises, aircraft and helicopters of anti-submarine warfare aviation, and also fighters and bombers of the Northern Fleet’s Air Force and Air Defense Army practiced interaction with the crews of the Kola Flotilla’s warships.

The naval drills also focused on the anti-submarine and anti-subversion defense of warships and submarines at their bases and during anchorages in unsafe roadsteads. The Kola Flotilla’s special-purpose units and anti-subversion boats successfully practiced missions to fight underwater subversion forces and capabilities. The Kola Flotilla naval groups that have accomplished all their assigned combat training missions in the Barents Sea have returned to their bases of Severomorsk and Polyarny.