A second Russian naval group, led by an attack submarine armed with missiles, arrived in China on Monday, following a transit that had raised concerns among America’s allies.
The Russian Pacific Fleet said diesel-electric submarine Ufa, which is escorted by rescue tug Alatau, made a port call in Qingdao, a city in eastern China facing the Yellow Sea.
Photos posted by the Russian Embassy in China on its Facebook page showed the Chinese military personnel standing in formation to welcome the visiting Russian military vessels.
The Russian diesel-electric submarine Ufa sails into the port of Qingdao in China on December 9, 2024. The submarine is capable of launching Kalibr cruise missiles that have seen extensive use in strikes against Ukraine. The Russian diesel-electric submarine Ufa sails into the port of Qingdao in China on December 9, 2024. The submarine is capable of launching Kalibr cruise missiles that have seen extensive use in strikes against Ukraine. Russian Embassy in China
The arrival of the Ufa and Alatau came less than a week after three corvettes and a support vessel of Russia visited Qingdao on Thursday as part of their Asia-Pacific deployment.
The visiting Russian corvettes Gromky, Rezky, and Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, as well as the tanker Pechenga, on Monday left the Chinese port for their base in Vladivostok, the Russian Pacific Fleet said in a separate press release.
A Russian navy fleet consisting of four vessels wrapped up visit to China’s coastal city Qingdao and left on Dec. 9th. During the visit, Chinese and Russian naval sailors conducted cross-deck visits and exchanged ideas on professional skills. #Chinesenavy #Russiannavy pic.twitter.com/UWAJgXFONs — China Bugle 中国军号 (@ChinaBugle) December 9, 2024
The 3,900-ton Ufa, which can launch Kalibr cruise missiles that have seen extensive use in strikes against Ukraine, was commissioned in November 2022 in St. Petersburg. It is on a voyage transiting from the Baltic Sea to the Vladivostok-based Russian Pacific Fleet.
The Russian submarine reached the Indo-Pacific region in October, which saw it making port calls in India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. On November 28, it was spotted transiting in the South China Sea off the coasts of the Philippines, a treaty ally of the United States.
Another Washington’s treaty ally, Japan, reported that a submarine and a rescue towboat of Russia on December 3 were sailing northward in the waters between two of the country’s southwestern islands in the Philippine Sea, a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean.
It’s likely that the Russian submarine spotted by Japan and the Philippines was the same. Newsweek has contacted the Russian Defense Ministry for confirmation by email.
During the submarine’s visit to China, the Russian sailors will hold a number of meetings with representatives of the Chinese navy, as well as visit the Chinese Naval Submarine Academy and local tourist attractions, according to the Russian Pacific Fleet’s statement.
This came amid U.S. Navy Admiral Samuel Paparo, the commander of the U.S. military in the Indo-Pacific region, saying last month that Russia might help China, which is a pacing challenge for the U.S., cut American naval dominance by providing submarine technology.
The Ufa is the fourth of six Project 636.3 submarines that were built for Russia’s Pacific Fleet. In its Facebook post, the Russian Embassy in China claimed that the submarine is called
Russian Attack Submarine Calls at Chinese Port
