Russia has sent a cargo ship to replenish supplies at a strategic air base in Syria, which may indicate the Kremlin's intention to maintain its military presence in the country after the change of power. This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing American officials and an analysis of satellite images, Focus reports.
It is noted that the cargo ship "Sparta" sailed from St. Petersburg in March and arrived in the Syrian port of Tartus in May, escorted for most of the route by ships of the Russian Navy.
The ship was carrying cargo to replenish the supplies of the Khmeimim air base and, as noted in the WSJ, this is the first recorded mission to replenish the supplies of Russian military facilities in Syria since the fall of the Bashar Assad regime in late 2024.
As "Militarny" recalls, in mid-May OSINT analysts detected how the Russian cargo ship "Sparta" arrived in the Syrian port of Tartus, escorted by warships.
In addition, the convoy took strict security measures. After passing Gibraltar, all ships turned off their transponders, and at least two ships transmitted false information about their location - as if they were in the Baltic Sea. We recall that after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.