Russian Naval Task Force Heads to Gulf of Aden

A Pacific Fleet’s task force led by the Admiral Vinogradov destroyer left the Far Eastern port of Vladivostok on Wednesday to join the international anti-piracy mission off the horn of Africa.

“The previous four task forces escorted more than 100 merchant ships of various countries. None of them was seized by pirates,” a Pacific Fleet spokesman, Capt. 1st Rank Roman Martov, said.

The Admiral Vinogradov destroyer is accompanied by a salvage tug and the Pechenga tanker.

The task force is to replace the current naval group led by Northern Fleet’s Admiral Levchenko Udaloy class guided-missile destroyer. The group, which also includes the Olekma tanker and the SB-36 tugboat of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, arrived in the Gulf of Aden on July 3.

The Russian Navy has maintained a presence off the Horn of Africa since October 2008, with warships operating on a rotation basis.

Ria Novosti | November 17, 2010