The forces and troops of the Northern Fleet operating in the Arctic as part of an exercise with an expeditionary group have begun to return to their places of deployment. This was reported by the press service of the Northern Fleet.
During the Arctic exercise, the military sailors ensured the security of maritime communications and areas of economic activity of the Russian Federation in the waters of the Northern Sea Route, solved the tasks of managing the Arctic expeditionary group if there was a risk of a terrorist attack. The exercises were held at the training grounds of the Murmansk Region, in the Barents and Kara Seas, in the Laptev Sea, in the areas of the Novosibirsk Islands, the Franz Josef Land archipelago, as well as in the Krasnoyarsk Territory near the port of Dudinka on the Yenisei River.
According to the commander of the Northern Fleet, Admiral Hero of Russia Alexander Moiseev, the Arctic exercise was under the close attention of the naval and air intelligence forces of foreign states. Foreign aircraft performed up to 17 sorties into the airspace of the Barents Sea and the Finnish border regions with Russia. In addition, the hydrographic vessel "Echo" and the frigate URO "Lancaster" of the British Navy were sent to the Barents Sea. There was also a Norwegian reconnaissance ship "Mariata".
About eight thousand military personnel, about 800 units of combat and special equipment, up to 120 aircraft and up to 50 warships and support vessels were involved in the Arctic exercise.
Svetlana Tsygankova