For the first time since the collapse of the USSR, Russia is establishing a naval base close to vital maritime supply lines.
The Russian government revealed on November 11 that Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin approved a draft agreement on creating a naval logistics base in Sudan and gave instructions to submit a proposal to the president on signing the document. The draft deal was submitted by the Defense Ministry, approved by the Foreign Ministry, the Supreme Court, the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Investigative Committee of Russia and was preliminarily agreed to by the Sudanese side.
According to the agreement, the Russian Navy’s logistics facility in Sudan “meets the goals of maintaining peace and stability in the region, is defensive and is not aimed against other countries.” The base can be used for carrying out repairs and replenishing supplies and for the crewmembers of Russian naval ships to have a rest. The logistics base is expected to embrace the coastal, water and mooring areas.” The Sudanese side has the right to use the mooring area upon agreement with the authorized body of the Russian side,” the document reads.
The text says that a maximum of four warships may stay at the naval logistics base, including “naval ships with a nuclear propulsion system on condition of observing nuclear and environmental safety norms.” Also, Russia will reportedly deliver weapons and military hardware to Sudan in order to maintain the air defense of the Port Sudan area, where the Russian naval facility would be located.
The military-technical and security cooperation between Russia and Sudan has significantly increased since 2017. The creation of the Russian naval base there is a logical step to develop this cooperation. It should be noted that the Russian base in Syria’s Tartus also had the name of a ‘logistical facility’ before it was transformed into a fully-fledged naval base.
If this project is fully implemented, this will contribute to the rapid growth of Russian influence in western Africa. Russian naval forces will also be able to increase their presence in the Red Sea and in the area between the Gulf of Aden and the Gulf of Oman. Both of these areas are the core of the current maritime energy supply routes. The naval facility will allow Russians to resupply their naval group in the region more effectively and increase the strength of their forces. For example, at least one Russian naval group regularly operates as a part of the anti-piracy mission near Somalia and in the Indian Ocean in general.
The new base will also serve as a foothold of Russia in the case of a standoff with naval forces of NATO member states that actively use their military infrastructure in Djibouti to project power in the region. The increased presence of the Russians in the Red Sea is also a factor that could affect the Saudi-Houthi conflict. If the Russian side opts to indirectly support the Iranian-Houthi coalition, the situation for the Saudi Kingdom will become even more complicated. Its operations to block and pressure the Houthi-controlled port of al-Hudaydah would become much less effective.
It is expected that the United States (regardless of the administration in the White House) will try to prevent the Russian expansion in the region at any cost. For an active foreign policy of Russia, the creation of the naval facility in Sudan surpasses all public and clandestine actions in Libya in recent years. From the point of view of protecting Russian national interests in the Global Oceans, this step is even more important than the creation of the permanent air and naval bases in Syria.
What is impressive is the way Russia is making surgical moves when it comes to opening military bases outside Russia. Instead of applying the mass principle of the US, Russia is picking the best geopolitical and strategic locations for it’s bases, which of course immensely reduces costs. Britain will be more irritated than the US, bearing in mind what happened to General Gordon at Khartoum in the 19th century.
“If this project is fully implemented, this will contribute to the rapid growth of Russian influence in western Africa.”
All this time I must have been looking at a mirror image of the continent of Africa. Then again, the author may have been confused with French Sudan in the old French colony in western Africa, which is now the country of Mali.
““meets the goals of maintaining peace and stability in the region, is defensive and is not aimed against other countries.” The base can be used for carrying out repairs and replenishing supplies and for the crewmembers of Russian naval ships to have a rest…”
In all seriousness, this is funny.
I m afraid you ‘re not getting the picture right, Mr Anonymous.
Putin in summary says that it is defensive, and not aimed at other countries, except those of Saudi stupid Empire vassals, of overtheboard Israeli self claimed omnipotence, of NATO s Dijibouti based african dreams, of French Central africa incursions and of US oil grabbing somewhere in east of the continent.
And a nearby Chinese base in the horn of A
Do they have king size beds on those boats?
It would have been good if they had been there 20 years ago, as a Russian presence in the region might have helped to prevent the western organized breakup of Sudan. But now? I’m not sure. Although an international water, both ends of the Red Sea are choke points, where the western-compliant Egyptian government and the US, British and French navies can easily provoke trouble for the Russian sailors. I think, it would have been better if they had set up a base in Djibouti, right next door to the already existing US, French, British, Japanese and Saudi bases there. Or, better still, if they had joined and expanded the already existing Chinese base in Djibouti. A shared Chinese-Russian navy base in Djibouti, imagine that! Oh, the horror, the chagrin …
…Egyptian government and navy can easily provoke trouble for the Russian sailors…
…In all seriousness, this is funny…
I’m not sure if English is your first language (it isn’t mine either), but I know from many books, newspaper articles etc. that whether you steer your own little dinghy or you’re one of the 4000+ crew of an aircraft carrier, you are a “sailor” in both cases. You can also often read that some high-powered modern ferry or military ship “sails” from A to B etc. … at least in British English this is so, dunno about Murica.
Maybe one of the natives can help us bloody foreigners with this?
You are absolutely correct.
I am and you are absolutely correct.
Eastern African… not Western…
but apart from that an interesting development…
the Russians go quiet… and suddenly hit…. surprise attack – if right time – – – is kind of a fait a comply …
Remember China also has a base in Djibouti. And that the (allegedly friendly to Russia) gibbering globetrotting genocidal Gujarati gangster government of Narendrabhai Damodardasbhai Modi in India is now openly allied to the Imperialist States of Amerikastan and is conducting naval exercises with it and its vassals Japan and Australia. The paid Modi media in India carefully avoid ever mentioning that by allying with the Imperialist States of Amerikastan, the gibbering globetrotting Gujarati genocidaire is directly siding against Russia.
The perfid Albion as one of the branches of the evil AZE (AngloZionist Empire) supports the pirates in Somalia so when a ship hasn’t insurance with certain Brittish insurance ziocompanies, those pirates are ordered to attack and loot the ship and/or claim a ransom. I guess this factor also contributed to Russia deciding to protect its assets. China has already established a base in Djibouti to carry out its own protection. It’s fine when the ziomafia is confronted.
Nice place for some S400s and a few frigate mounted Zircons. Big reach.
Anony_mouse,exactly, a pretty good place for that.
And I do remember what one of two russian ships did in Syria with missiles launched from the far away Caspian Sea.
It further turns out clear that such a naval base makes any israeli-anglozionist war in the Ormuz very less likely.
I t doesn t seem reasonable at any level, that the Lavrov boys and bad Vlad
are entering an adventure in northern Africa. An adventure meaning that this agreement is not framed by good guarantees it will last a couple of decades or so.
After all stupid ‘diplomacies’ are not part of Moscow’s menu of international action options.
And further, the Egyptian guys have a long solid experience (see neighboring Lybia) of how deep and how far US and western loyalty (and promises) goes.