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2026-02-23 Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Russian - Iranian Joint Naval Exercises to begin this week in Sea of Oman - Chinese Participation Possible
[MaritimeExecutive] The Russian Steregushchiy-class corvette Stoykiy (F545) has arrived in Bandar Abbas in advance of a naval exercise to be held jointly with the regular Iranian Navy at the end of this week. The exercise is to take place in the Sea of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean, the sea area in which the USS Abraham Lincoln and its carrier strike group are also currently deployed.

The corvette Stoykiy (F545) has been making its way slowly around Africa for several weeks now making port calls, and was the Russian participant in Exercise Will for Peace-2026 in South Africa in January. On February 4, the Stoykiy made a port visit to Port Victoria, to help the Seychelles mark the 50th anniversary of independence. It is unlikely now that the Russian participation will also include the Udaloy Class frigate RFS Marshal Shaposhnikov (F543), which was nearby making a port call in Muscat last week, but which has now sailed east to participate in India’s International Fleet Review.
Have fun, boys — don’t forget to look pretty for the eyes in the sky!
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Posted by Clem+Elmish4239 2026-02-23 00:00|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [1813 views ]  Top
 File under: Govt of Iran 

1 The Russian Steregushchiy-class corvette Stoykiy (F545) is joined by newly converted submarine "Moskva" from the Black Sea.
Posted by European Conservative 2026-02-23 05:41||   2026-02-23 05:41|| Front Page Top

2 The Chinese would probably be there only to eavesdrop on the US, try to decipher stealth aircraft signatures and study any electronic suppression capabilities used during an attack on Iran. Would help with any South China Sea festivities.

Some say it's about trade that the Chinese are there, but Iran only imported around $18 billion worth of goods from China and exported only about $14.5 billion in return during 2024 (and those numbers have gone down by about 20% since), so not really huge numbers.

The Chinese don't really give a rip about Iran, but it does give them some additional avenues for intelligence if a war breaks out while they're there.
Posted by Mullah Richard 2026-02-23 09:58||   2026-02-23 09:58|| Front Page Top

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