Rússia prepara poderosa linha de defesa no Mar Negro, retaguarda.
Vladimir Putin may or may not have lost his grip on reality, but his desire to tighten his grip on Crimea is surprisingly logical if you consider the history and strategic importance of Russia's Black Sea Fleet. A closer look at Russia's forces along the southern Ukrainian coast reveals a lot of Putin's thinking. The Black Sea is not a small place. It is roughly the size of California, or about 60% larger than the Persian Gulf, and is bordered by Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Russia, Georgia and Turkey. That being said, when it comes to large naval armadas like an American Carrier Strike Group, it is not exactly the Pacific Ocean. This is especially true considering that a Peninsula at the center of this body of water is bristling with anti-ship missiles… and they don't even belong to the country that they're based in.
The media reported earlier, that fighter aviation regiment in Crimea will also be modernised, and in Djankoy, not far from Ukrainian border, there will be helicopter units created to support the Airborne Assault Regiment in the region. In November 2015 Ukrainian Sovbez voiced its concern when there were about a thousand “polite” paratroopers sent from Ivanovo to the border. So what new can we expect from Russia on the South in 2016? Sevastopol’s city council accepts the possibility of a new naval base being built in Crimea on the lake Donuzlav. If we remember the history, in 1976 to 2014 the base was under Ukrainian authority. The small flotilla there consisted of ground assault ships, rocket boats and supply ships. After Crimea entered Russian Federation, Donuzlav was closed down. But, probably not for long. Increase of Black Sea Fleet’s combat capabilities require increase of the naval infrastructure. “To talk about Donuzlav being a naval base again is still too hard. But we already have a task to create a military group capable to conduct tasks and missions in the region. As we develop this group, Donuzlav’s question will probably arise”, – RIA Novosti cites the city governor.
He also told us that currently works are being done to modernise already existing naval infrastructure on the peninsula. It is done with joint effort from the Black Sea Fleet and Southern Military District. According to the city governor, while Crimea was under Ukrainian authority, the peninsula’s military infastructure was not developed. After Crimea was returned to Russia, military installations in the area entered a phase of active reconstruction, and the Black Sea Fleet began to spread its influence. The Fleet’s PR office informs that according to rearmament programme 2020, as of 2016 the Black Sea Fleet will accept into service project 11356 guard ships “Admiral Grigorovich”, “Admiral Essen” and “Admiral Makarov”, two diesel submarines “Staryi Oskol” and “Krasnodar”, and several supply and maitenance ships. Probably some of them will be sent over to Donuzlav to be stationed there. As per Spetsstroi Rossii statement, the docking areas and other infrastructural objects are nearing completion in Novorossiysk. They will serve mainly for the Fleet’s submarines. Also, a new Novorossiysk Naval Base is nearing completion on the Northern Shore of Tsemesskaya bay. Therefore, Russia, even with all its economical problems, will continue to modernise and perfect its troops and naval units in the area. These preparations, of course, need a lot of resources. But Moscow is ready to allocate them to guarantee its safety.
