War in Ukraine. Why this Russian attack submarine will pass Cherbourg

It has become a habit… which, however, is not trivial. Of the Russian warships in fact, regularly crisscross the Channel Sea and continue to fuel fantasies of a war in Ukraine that drags on.

“These are fairly frequent maneuvers. The Russians pass by our coasts when they want to go to the Mediterranean, the Atlantic or the Black Sea. The Channel is a sheltered corridorwithout nautical current”, confirmed the maritime military authorities last summer.

« We remain attentive with our allies. It’s rarely trivial. Since February 2022, however, the passages of Russian military ships have halved. Previously, we had ships in transit almost every month. »

There are passages more noticed than others, on the other hand. The most recent, in November 2024, is that of the frigate Admiral Golovko which carried on board the new generation of Zircon hypersonic cruise missilesa weapon with a range of 1,000 km boasting a top speed greater than nine times the speed of sound.

No more Russian submarines in the Mediterranean?

And there are the submarines. The black boats, due to their discretion, are effectively placed under close supervision by the French Navy when they skirt the French coast. This is currently the case for Novorossiysk.

Sighted on January 4, 2024 by the Portuguese Navythis diesel-powered Kilo-class attack submarine is heading back to the Baltic Sea and is expected to sail into the Channel Sea in a few hours.

Already spotted in the opposite direction in September 2024, he has probably just left the Syrian port of Tartous which served as a base for the Russian navy. However, the fall of the Assad regime disrupted Moscow’s plans and forced Novorossiysk, without logistical support, to return to the fold.

According to Naval Newsthe departure of this 72.80 meter building means that no more Russian submarines would spawn in the Mediterranean and the Putin regime is reportedly actively seeking a new base for its ships in this area to support its efforts on the Ukrainian front.

In the meantime, even if she does not officially confirm her presence, the French Navy will ensure close surveillance of this particular “visitor”, not far from its territorial waters.

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