On Sunday night, a Portuguese Navy frigate finished escorting a Russian refueling ship, which began on Saturday, the Navy announced today.
“The frigate D. Francisco de Almeida, during a surveillance and control mission of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), accompanied the passage of the Russian refueling ship ‘AOL Yelnya’ from Saturday, December 30, in the south of the Algarve, until early Sunday evening, December 31, at the exit of the EEZ, in the north of Portugal,” reads a statement sent to Lusa.
According to the note, “the importance of this mission underlines the Navy’s commitment to defending its territory and national interests, as well as those of the Atlantic Alliance”.
The branch of the Armed Forces also said in the statement that it is present “365 days a year, 24 hours a day” to “protect and promote Portugal’s interests at and through the sea”.
Since the beginning of the year, the Portuguese Navy has been accompanying several Russian ships as they pass off the national coast. These missions have become more frequent since the start of the war in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Just last week, the Portuguese Republic ship Figueira da Foz accompanied the Russian scientific research vessel Akademik Keldysh.