Navy back in Syria

 

Russian warships have returned to the naval base in the Syrian port of Tartus, used by the Soviet Union since the late sixties, after more than a decade of absence.

In August 2008, Syrian president Bashar Assad, during his visit to Russia, pointed out that his country is open for talks with Russia about reactivating the use of the naval base in Tartus.

It was in 1967 that the Soviet Navy started using this Syrian port as one of its main Mediterranean stations.

Russian bomber intercepted as Obama visited Canada

The Russian military on Friday confirmed that a heavy bomber carried out an air patrol near Canada earlier this month within 24 hours of US President Barack Obama’s visit to Ottawa. “There was a flight on February 18,” Vladimir Drik, an aide to the Russian chief of staff, was quoted as saying by the RIA Novosti news agency. “The Tupolev-160 (plane) fulfilled all its air patrol tasks, it was a planned flight,” he said. But he added that the crew acted solely within the limits of international air agreements and did not violate Canadian airspace. Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Canadian fighter jets were scrambled in response to a Russian bomber skirting Canada’s Arctic frontier last week. MacKay said the Russian aircraft did not enter Canadian airspace, but “within 24 hours” of Obama’s first foreign trip as president on February 19 two CF-18 fighter jets were dispatched to meet the Russian plane. “It was a strong coincidence which we met with… CF-18 fighter planes… (to) send a strong signal they should back off and stay out of our air space,” he said. An anonymous Russian government source, quoted by the Interfax and RIA Novosti news agencies, described Mackay’s comments as “incomprehensible.” “This was a scheduled flight… the plane did not enter the air space of any other country. “In light of that, the comments from the Canadian defence minister are baffling,” the source said.

Canadian fighter jets intercepted a Russian heavy bomber skirting Canada’s Arctic frontier within 24 hours of US President Barack Obama visit to Ottawa last week, officials said Friday.