Six Russian warships are on their way to the Black Sea, in a move that indicates preparations for a possible amphibious invasion of Ukrainian territory, the Russian news agency Interfax reported today (Tuesday).
According to the Kremlin, the vessels, which are intended for the transfer of ground forces, are expected to participate in war maneuvers set as early as last month and were grouped from various ports in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as part of the Russian navy's redeployment.
The six heavy landings, the Korlov, Kaliningrad, Piotr Morgenov, Povdonostes, Minsk and the Olngorsky Gornyk, are expected to pass today in the Bosphorus in Turkey on their way to the Black Sea.
Russia fears that in the event of a full-scale war on Ukraine, Turkey, a member of the NATO alliance, could shut down traffic in Egypt leading to the Black Sea to Russian vessels, thus preventing Moscow from reinforcing its naval forces on the front.
"Turkey reserves the right to close Egypt to all foreign warships in the event of active fighting in the Black Sea or if it is threatened by aggressive operations it may also refuse passage of merchant ships from countries engaged in fighting in the region, which could cost the Russian economy dearly," explains Euroc commentator. Senior Turkish politician for Reuters.
Turkey, which shares a Black Sea maritime border with Russia and Ukraine, has warned Russia in the past that military action on Ukraine's territory would be "unacceptable" and "unwise."
Turkey has also in the past supplied advanced military equipment to the Ukrainian army, during which it provoked outrage in Moscow.
Satellite image of Russian military forces deployed near Belarus's border with Ukraine, Photo: AP
Meanwhile, yesterday it was reported that Russia has in recent days accelerated its preparations for a major ground operation in Ukraine, according to satellite photos published on the American news network CNN.
According to the series of photographs revealed, since the end of 2021, the Russian military has deployed hundreds of tanks and cannons from front bases, including a base that has been used to concentrate Russian forces in the southern border of Ukraine since Russian forces began building in the region.
The removal of the forces from the bases and their transfer to the forces stationed near the border means that the Russian army is preparing for an operational phase of ground invasion of Ukrainian territory.
"These are important changes in the deployment of Russian forces on the ground," Konrad Mosaika, a military expert at the Roshan Strategic Institute, told CNN.
"We are now entering a new phase of Russian deployment where reinforced forces, along with manned vehicles, are moving towards the assembly areas for a ground operation."
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