On October 10, it became known about Russia's plans to establish a naval base on a permanent basis in the Syrian Mediterranean port of Tartus. fleet (Navy) of Russia. This was announced by State Secretary - Deputy Minister of Defense Nikolai Pankov. He specified that the relevant documents have already been prepared and are undergoing interagency coordination procedures.
The base will be created on the basis of the 720-th point of logistics (PMTC) of the Russian Navy, created in 1971 year. Tartus is located in 160 km north-west of Damascus, PBTR occupies the northern part of the port.
The military base in the Syrian Tartus will be the first for the fleet outside Russia.
Seriously and for a long time
According to Franz Klintsevich, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security, the intention to locate a naval base in Tartus on a permanent basis confirms that Russia has come to the Middle East "seriously and for a long time."
"This is a decision of a strategic order, indicating that Russia is aware of its interests and is ready to defend them. Ultimately, it is about stabilizing the situation in Syria and in the Middle East as a whole, thereby depriving terrorism of the nutrient medium"
Franz Klintsevich
First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security
This opinion is shared by TASS military observer Viktor Litovkin.
The base is necessary not only for replenishment of reserves of fuel, fuels and lubricants, fresh water, minor repairs of power and other ship systems, short-term rest of crews, but also for long-term parking. Replenishment of ammunition and other materiel, for the organization of coordination of ship interactions, for the solution of other combat missions. Including for planning joint actions with aviationstationed at the air base in Hmeimim
Viktor Litovkin
TASS military commentator
The expert stresses that this base will need to be protected both from the air, from the sea, and on land. This will require a certain amount of military equipment and personnel. It is impossible to organize all this at the logistics point.
Creating a naval base in Tartus allows you to comprehensively solve the problem of Russia's military presence in the region.
Together the bases in Hamme and Tartus will constitute a serious military force - air and sea supremacy, no one can ignore.
Franz Klintsevich
In the autumn of 2015, the Russian side carried out dredging and expansion of the mooring front of the 720-1 PMTO in Tartus.
October 4 2016, the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Igor Konashenkov told reporters that "the naval base in Tartus" and coastal ships of the Mediterranean squadron will cover the C-300 anti-aircraft missile system delivered from the air.
Control and deterrence
The need for the emergence of a full-fledged base on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean, in the opinion of Litovkin, will first of all make it possible to control this water area. The United States is holding the 5 fleet there.
The ships of this connection with the Aegis ABM systems and Tomahawk long-range cruise missiles regularly enter the Black Sea, take aim at our bases and parts of the Strategic Missile Forces in the European part of the country. To restrain them in the Mediterranean is much more logical than on the Russian coast.
Viktor Litovkin
Another task of the military base is the fight against terrorists in the Middle East. It is more convenient to do this from the Mediterranean than from Russian bases. The expert also notes that we should not forget about the pirates in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. To them from Tartus is much closer than from Sevastopol or Vladivostok.
Status upgrade
Opening a base in Tartus will improve the status of the Russian military in the region and the quality of combat missions. The legal decision on the military base will allow creating in Tartus all the necessary conditions for the performance of combat missions by the Russian military contingent, according to Klintsevich.
With this base, we can safely fulfill those contractual obligations that we have. People who serve will be socially protected. They understand that they are under the protection of the law, and their combat mission will be performed with a different quality.
Franz Klintsevich
He also noted that, if necessary, Russia would be able to send "any number of personnel" there, taking into account the combat missions being carried out. In addition, the senator believes that the legal status of the base will be defended by the military there "within the framework of existing international law."
It will be very difficult for someone to press this right shamelessly or ignore it, as is often the case today in interethnic conflicts.
Franz Klintsevich