Russian Navy to Make First Visit in Two Decades

Three Russian Pacific Fleet ships will visit Cambodia next month, the first such port stop in almost two decades by the post Soviet Union navy. The three vessels, led by the Admiral Panteleev, a large anti-submarine ship, along with the salvage tug Fotiy Krylov and the tanker Boris Butoma, will stop at sihanoukville en route to UN anti-piracy missions off the coast of Somalia, the Russian Embassy said in a statement. Recounting the close military ties between the Soviet Union and Cambodia during the 1980s, the embassy said the visit "confirms a growing interest of the Russian Federation to develop relations with Cambodia, including military sphere." 

"This historical visit will mark a new chapter in military interaction between Russia and Cambodia," the embassy said. Both the Ream Naval Base near Sihanoukville and the Phnom Penh military river base were built in the 1980s with assistance from Russian experts, according to the embassy. "We want to make this visit every year," said Colonel Nikolay Nikolayuk, Military, Air and Naval Attache for the Russian Embassy. "If everything goes well, next year we can organize some humanitarian programs." May Marith, director of the harbormaster department of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, said that about 500 Russian sailors were expected in the city during the Sept 8 to 13 visit.