On 28 July the Russia’s Navy Day celebrations were held in St Petersburg and Vladivostok to mark the Navy’s 328thbirthday. In St Petersburg warships from three foreign navies attended the event. They were a Chinese task group comprising the guided-missile destroyer Jiaozuo and the replenishment ship Honghu, the Indian and St. Petersburg-built frigate INS Tabar and the Algerian Chinese-built training ship Soummam.
The Russian Navy Day celebrations were held on the Neva River in and featured a parade by Russian and visiting foreign warships. The parade included a fleet of 20 surface combatants, a submarine and four sailing ships. They included the Project 22800 Karakurt class missile corvette Odintsovo, the Project 20380 missile corvette Boiky, the Project 12700 coastal minesweeper Alexander Obukhov, and the Project 21631 missile corvettes Grad, Naro-Fominsk, Grad Sviyazhsk, and Serpukhov. Additionally, the Project 23550 icebreaking patrol ship Ivan Papanin and the new Project 636.3 Varshavyanka (Kilo) class diesel-electric submarine Mozhaisk.
In Vladivostok Russian warships were joined by a Chinese task group comprising the amphibious ship Longhushan and training ship Zheng He.
Later the same day, President Vladimir Putin met with representatives of foreign delegations taking part in the Navy Day celebrations. Attending the meeting at the Admiralty were representatives from Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brazil, Cambodia, Cameroon, China, Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Republic of Guinea, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Libya, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tanzania, the United Arab Emirates, Venezuela, and Vietnam. In his Navy Day message President Putin said,
“Today, I would like to particularly note that many naval crews are fearlessly fighting in hot spots along the engagement line during the special military operation. Just like their great ancestors, they fight to defend Sevastopol and other ports of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, delivering devastating blows to the enemy and destroying its military facilities.”
Following the Navy day celebrations the Tabar and the Chinese Task Group undertook separate passage exercises with the Russian Navy. Tabar is scheduled to visit London from 7-11 August.
Caption: PLA Navy’s destroyer Jiaozuo and Russian Navy’s corvette Soobrazitelny conduct passage exercise on 29 July 2024. (PLA)
Sources: IN, PLA, Kremlin
