Russian naval base upgrade in Abkhazia raises global concerns
In the port of Očamčyra in Abkhazia, one of the auxiliary search and rescue ships of Project 22870, belonging to the Black Sea Fleet, was spotted. According to analysts, this is a worrying signal for the world, suggesting that the Russian base has already been adapted for larger ships, and combat ships may soon appear there.
Information about the movements of the Russians was reported by the portal Naval News, citing analyzed satellite images. They are less surprising if one recalls the reports from the end of 2023. At that time, the Russians decided to withdraw some of the remaining ships of the Black Sea Fleet from the Black Sea and, at the same time, began work on a naval base in Abkhazia — a separatist region of Georgia. These works were related, among other things, to deepening the port and rebuilding parts of the infrastructure to handle larger ships.
Russia transfers ships to the base in Abkhazia
The Ukrainian portal Defense Express draws attention to the displacement of the project 22870 ship, which reaches 2,061 tonnes and has a draft of up to 3.2 metres. Additionally, it notes that this vessel has a total hull length of 57 metres.
This may suggest that the Russians have indeed completed the work related to the modernization of the port and will soon start bringing more large ships there. Among them may also be armed units, such as project 21631 (Buyan-M) ships.
Ships with Kalibr missiles
Buyan-M are missile corvettes characterized by similar dimensions as the project 22870 ships. They measure about 75 metres in length, so they are a bit longer. However, they have a narrower width (11 metres instead of 14 metres), and their draft reaches only 2.6 metres. Despite this, they are capable of carrying dangerous weapons.
They carry Kalibr missiles, of which Buyan-M can have a maximum of eight. Each measures about 9 metres in length and has a diameter of over 0.5 metres. The range depends on the version but can reach up to 2,500 kilometres. These Russian corvettes are also armed with 100 mm and 30 mm naval guns.
The Russians' decision to withdraw some forces from the ports in Crimea was a consequence of the systematic damage inflicted by Ukrainian units. As recently explained, the silent hero of the war in Ukraine turns out to be the Magura V5 maritime drones, which hit a total of 14 Russian ships, eight of which were completely destroyed.
