Special to WorldTribune.com

MOSCOW — The Russian Navy has deployed a combat vessel off the coast
of Syria.

Russian sources said the Navy deployed a warship off the coast of Syria
earlier this month. The sources said the naval mission was identified as that of
counter-piracy.

“The ship is operating out of the [Syrian] port of Tartous,” a Russian
source said.

The deployment was confirmed by a senior Russian Navy source. The source said the vessel stemmed from the Navy’s Black Sea fleet and joined another naval ship in the eastern Mediterranean.

This marked the second Russian Navy deployment in Syria in 2012. In February, a Russian Navy task force docked off the Syrian coast during the height of the Sunni revolt against President Bashar Assad.

“There is a need for a Russian Navy presence to protect Russian
nationals,” the source said. “We are preparing for all contingencies.”

The Russian Navy has denied sending warships to Syria. The Navy has
acknowledged that a supply ship with a civilian crew has been in Tartous
over the last 10 days.

The sources said the Russian Navy presence in the eastern Mediterranean
included hundreds of Marines. They said the Marines could be used to help
evacuate thousands of Russian military advisers, contractors and other
personnel in Syria.

  Black Sea fleet, eastern Mediterranean, Moscow: Naval mission off Syrian coast for ‘counter-piracy’, port of Tartous, Russian Marines