Article Posted on : - Apr 08, 2013

MOSCOW (BNS): Russia has begun sending several warships to the Mediterranean Sea to set up a permanent task force and defend its interests in the region.

The task force dispatched to the Mediterranean Sea has passed the Strait of Malacca and entered the Indian Ocean, a Ria Novosti report quoting a Pacific Fleet spokesman said.

The task force comprised of six vessels of the Pacific Fleet, including a destroyer carrying several helicopters, three amphibious warfare ships with marine detachments, a tanker and a tug, the report said.

The task force is expected to reach the Mediterranean by mid-May and will remain on permanent duty there.

The warships and the marines are doing daily drills during the trip, including artillery practices and searches for enemy submarines; the spokesman was quoted as saying.

According to the report, 25 officers will be in charge of the command and control system, and the command and control agencies will be based either in Novorossiysk, Russia, or in Sevastopol, Ukraine.