Russian Naval Destroyer Leaves Strait of Gibraltar, Enters Mediterranean

The Russian Navy's Vice-Admiral Kulakov, an Udaloy-class destroyer, entered the Mediterranean Sea, a Northern Fleet spokesperson said Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — "Large Northern Fleet anti-submarine destroyer Vice-Admiral Kulakov, being on a long journey, has completed the passage of the narrowest part of the Strait of Gibraltar and entered the Mediterranean Sea. The passage of the strait, whose bottleneck is 14 kilometers [8.6 miles], was carried out during the hours of darkness," Capt. 1st Rank Vadim Serga told journalists.

The crew has improved its safe navigation skills in complex night conditions, he outlined.

Serga added that earlier in the day, the vessel’s personnel held celebrations marking National Unity Day in memory of the events of 1612 in Russian history, when Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky led a people’s volunteer army to liberate Moscow from Polish occupation.

Since October 23, the ship had already passed more than 3,000 miles, with part of the distance in stormy weather.