President Putin Agrees To Massive Reshuffle To Restore The Strength Of The Russian Navy

JAKARTA - Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a new naval strategy aimed at fully restoring Russia's position as one of the world's leading maritime powers, Kremlin aide Nikolai Patrushev said in an interview published on Monday.

Russia has the third-strongest navy in the world after China and the United States, according to most of its public rankings, although its navy has suffered a series of major losses in Ukraine's war.

Patrushev, a former KGB officer who served with President Putin in the city of St. Petersburg in northern Russia during the Soviet Union, said the new naval strategy entitled "Russian Navy Development Strategy until 2050" was approved by President Putin in late May.

"Russia's position as one of the largest maritime powers in the world is gradually recovering," Patrushev told the Arguanti i Fakti newspaper in an interview.

"It is impossible to carry out such work without a long-term vision of scenarios for the development of situations in the oceans, the evolution of challenges and threats, and, of course, without defining the goals and targets facing the Russian Navy," explains Patrushev.

However, Patrushev did not provide further details on the strategy, although Russia has stepped up spending on defense and security to the Cold War level as a percentage of gross domestic product.

A US Department of Defense report said in 2021, China has the world's largest navy and Beijing's overall fighting force is expected to grow to 460 vessels by 2030.

Meanwhile, open source data shows Russia has 79 submarines, including 14 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, as well as 222 warships. The main fleet is the Northern Fleet based in Severomorsk, the Barents Sea.