The Russian side can start creating base in port Ochamchira already in 2009, the president of Abkhazia Sergey Bagapsh informed on Monday, BBC informs. According to the head of the self-proclaimed republic who was quoted by official representative of the president of Abkhazia in mass-media Christian Bzhanija, there are no documents signed by the parties. At the same time Sukhumi considers that, "proceeding from the treaty on friendship, cooperation and mutual help between Abkhazia and Russia, Abkhazia is ready to practical cooperation in this sphere and, accordingly, to official registration of cooperation with Black Sea Fleet".
The statement of the head of Abkhazia which independence was recognized only by Moscow was confirmed in General Staff of Navy Fleet of Russia. "This year we will begin practical, including dredging works at the coast of Abkhazia. "For performance of all works one year will not be enough", - the representative of the staff of ITAR-TASS informed. Under his information, after termination of works port Ochamchira located 60 km to the east of Sukhumi, can get big and small landing ships as well as the boats and sea trawlers of Black Sea Fleet.
Representative of the command of fleet explained that there's no aim to do so that the ships of every classes including cruisers moored on the berth of Ochamchira, so that a lot of Russian ships at the same time could moor in the port.
________________________________________
From editorial board: This time the main news - good. The base for torpedo boats and was ships in Ochamchira is - a good, rendered habitable place, extremely suitable for performance of possible fighting tasks. Till September, 1996 Krasnoznamennaja brigade of naval units of frontier troops of KGB USSR which then was relocated into port Kaspijsk in Dagestan was based in Ochamchira.
However there are fears that our military officials will report prettily about new base and will decide that the problem of basing of Black Sea Fleet is solved. That, of course, is not so. The base in Ochamchira can't be considered as the main one and not only because a bay there is shallow but also owing to the fact that communications there are stretched and possibilities for interaction with the units of the North Caucasian district in case of war will be extremely limited. Indeed coastal infrastructure there is obviously insufficient. It's simply good place for basing of torpedo boats - much better, than Karantinnaya Bay in Sevastopol.
It's good news, of course, but it doesn't remove the question of deployment of the main base of Black Sea Fleet from Sevastopol in water area of Azov.The matter is not in position of Ukraine. Even if official Kiev suddenly will fall in love with Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation, the fleet should be all the same withdrawn. Even if Luzhkov will arm Moscow OMON and win Crimea - all the same stretched along 700 kilometres communications passing along the territory of the alien and not always friendly state turn stay of Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol in case of war into communal grave. There, of course, there are places where by old tradition is possible to flood ships but the coast is not already ours. The fleet needs to run away from Sevastopol!
Moreover, as soon as Russia will seriously start working on creation of new base for Black Sea Fleet in Krasnodar territory, sharpness of the question regarding Sevastopol will not simply disappear - Kiev will start persuading to leave the base to keep economic base of a city.
By the way, compelled basing of fleet in rather shallow harbours will push also modernisation of park of ships which for today doesn't corresponding to the tasks, facing Fleet on Black Sea. Possibly, out-of-date ships will be replaced by vessels with smaller draft, more compact one. Perhaps, they will at last return to construction of projects of ram wing machines. Works on perfection of seaplanes, it's a blessing that industrial base is situated in Taganrog will receive further development. As a whole, the role of sea aircraft in supply of the fleet will obviously grow.
Actually more diversified scheme of basing of the fleet along the whole water area of Black Sea and Azov, probably, is the most modern one.
Though something prompts that there will be some fuck up...
А.B.
