There is no longer a Russian fleet in the Mediterranean

Yesterday, the submarine Novorossiysk and the tug Yakov Grebelsky left the Mediterranean Sea through the Strait of Gibraltar.

It was the only submarine Moscow still had in the Mediterranean. We can now say that there is no longer a Russian naval fleet present in the region. At the moment, apart from the tanker Kola operating in the Alboran Sea, the only remaining Russian armed vessel is the corvette Boiky, which left the Mediterranean a few days ago and yesterday escorted the cargo ship Sparta IV on its eastward voyage, most likely bound for Tartus.

It is worth recalling that at the start of the war in Ukraine, there were 10 Russian Navy combat units deployed in the Mediterranean, including two submarines and two cruisers — Marshal Ustinov and Varyag — along with their Surface Action Groups (SAGs). Since then, there has been a slow but steady withdrawal from the area, first by major surface combatants and subsequently by the remaining vessels, leaving the Mediterranean without a significant Russian presence due to the lack of a permanent base of operations (although the withdrawal had already begun even before the loss of the Syrian facility).

Today, with only one minor unit still at sea, we can indeed state that the threat posed by a Russian naval force in the Mediterranean no longer exists — at least for now.