In an official announcement that quickly went viral in the afternoon, the Spanish Navy confirmed the new deployment of a Russian Navy Kilo II-class attack submarine heading toward the Mediterranean. The event was documented by the patrol vessel Atalaya and the Maritime Action Ship (BAM) Tornado, both currently engaged in surveillance and deterrence operations in the area.
Since the beginning of this year, NATO-affiliated armed forces have been closely monitoring the movements and presence of Russian Navy assets in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. The collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria has triggered a geopolitical shift in the region, casting doubt on the continued presence of Russian naval and air forces. Reports suggest that Russia may be withdrawing from the strategic naval base in Tartus, which—until the fall of the Syrian regime—served as Russia’s primary power-projection platform in the Mediterranean.
This afternoon, February 12, the Spanish Navy confirmed the innocent passage of a Russian Navy Kilo II-class attack submarine through the Atlantic, heading toward the Strait of Gibraltar to enter the Mediterranean. Open-source intelligence has identified the Russian unit as Krasnodar (B-265), part of the Black Sea Fleet. While the official statement did not mention it, the submarine is reportedly accompanied by the support vessel Evgeniy Churov.
Regarding the Spanish Navy assets involved in the monitoring, the patrol vessel Atalaya (P-74) recently departed from its home base in Ferrol to carry out a new mission focused on Presence, Surveillance, and Deterrence. This is not the first time it has closely monitored Russian vessels, as earlier this month, it tracked the Russian-flagged merchant ship Lady Mariia.
The Spanish task force was completed by the BAM Tornado, which has been conducting various patrol and surveillance operations in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea since the beginning of the year as part of presence, surveillance, and deterrence operations.
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