Photo taken on Dec. 27, 2016 shows a navy ship and a helicopter taking part in a rescue operation on the Black Sea coast at the crash site of Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 aircraft near Sochi, Russia. (Xinhua/Sputnik)
MOSCOW, March 18 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Black Sea Fleet expects to get 13 combat ships this year, some of which will be equipped with Kalibr cruise missiles, TASS news agency quoted senior Russian military officials as saying Monday.
The list will include small missile ships, patrol ships and the most advanced mine-sweeping ship, the report quoted Black Sea Fleet Commander Alexander Moiseyev as saying.
The new vessels are part of a fleet renewal program that started in 2014. By the year 2020, 70 percent of modern warships, aircraft and land and coastal defense troops' armament would have been modernized, he added.
TASS quoted the commander of Russia's Southern Military District, Alexander Dvornikov, as saying that the fleet will shortly receive a patrol ship, a high-speed transport assault boat, and a sea tug, all of which are currently undergoing tests.
The Black Sea Fleet is a large operational strategic command of the Russian Navy, operating in the Mediterranean, Black and Azov Seas.
Its official primary headquarters and facilities are located in the city of Sevastopol in Crimea, while the remainder of the fleet's facilities are based in various locations on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.