The largest of the Russian warships in running condition, the cruiser Marshal Ustinov, is taking part in maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea / Lev Fedoseyev / TASS

The Russian Defense Ministry has revealed some details of the naval and air force exercises off the coast of Syria, which will begin in the coming days. They will take place from September 1 to 8 and, according to the military department, will involve over 25 ships and support vessels, as well as 30 aircraft. The exercises will be led by the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral Vladimir Korolev. According to the Defense Ministry’s statement, “in international airspace, about 30 aircraft will practice training tasks, including Tu-160 strategic missile carriers, Tu-142MK and Il-38 anti-submarine aircraft, Su-33 fighters, and Su-30SM naval aviation aircraft.” The Su-33 carrier-based fighters will take off from the Khmeimim airfield; the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier is currently undergoing repairs. The largest of the Russian warships in running order, the cruiser Marshal Ustinov, and all three of the newest Project 11356 frigates are participating in the maneuvers in the Mediterranean. However, according to a person in the Ministry of Defense, the deployed forces of the fleet are still several times smaller than the composition of the Mediterranean 5th operational squadron of the Soviet era.

As the presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov acknowledged on Thursday, answering a question about the deployment of the fleet off the coast of Syria, the situation there “has significant potential for complications.” According to him, the situation around Idlib “leaves much to be desired”: “The hotbed of terrorists that has formed there does not bode well if such inaction continues. Therefore, of course, let’s say, increased precautions are entirely justified and reasonable.” And the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said that the United States only needs a day to deploy the necessary group in the region to strike Syria. Earlier, the United States promised to strike if Syrian troops use chemical weapons in Idlib, and the Russian Defense Ministry accused militant forces and the White Helmets organization of preparing a staged chemical attack.

In this situation, it is unlikely that the Syrian troops will attack Idlib in the coming days, but it is inevitable after the final details are agreed upon between Russia and Turkey, says a person close to the Russian Defense Ministry. At the same time, it cannot be ruled out that the offensive will be supported by strikes from Russian cruise missiles: there are currently seven ships in the Mediterranean carrying Kalibr missiles. Even if the announced "chemical attack" and the subsequent US strike actually take place, it is unlikely that this will lead to the cancellation of plans to resolve the Idlib problem - the last large enclave of militants, among whom there is a high percentage of irreconcilable jihadists, brought there under the terms of the ceasefire from enclaves already taken under government control. At the same time, there is no talk of occupying all of Idlib or even most of it by government troops - the approximate demarcation line with the Turkish army will be the Homs-Aleppo highway, says the interlocutor.

Russia begins major naval maneuvers off Syria