Putin expands navy after cancelling Navy Day for security reasons

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday announced the restructuring and further armament of the navy during the conclusion of a major naval exercise.

By the end of the year, two marine infantry brigades will be converted into divisions, with three more to follow shortly, Putin said.

“This will significantly increase the fleet’s striking power and combat capabilities,” he stated.

The five-day exercise, which concluded on Russia’s Navy Day on Sunday, involved more than 150 warships and support vessels, 120 aircraft and helicopters, and over 15,000 soldiers, according to official information.

The drills took place simultaneously in the Baltic Sea, the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Caspian Sea.

The aim of the exercise was to defend against a large-scale naval attack, the Russian government said.

The Kremlin accuses NATO of endangering Russia’s security. The Western military alliance also conducted a naval exercise earlier this year: BALTOPS 2025. According to official figures, around 50 ships and approximately 9,000 soldiers participated in the exercise in June.

Black Sea Fleet heavily damaged in Ukraine war

Putin ordered Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which started in February 2022.

Moscow has yet to achieve its officially stated war goals, including the capture of four Ukrainian regions. The Black Sea Fleet, which has been heavily involved in the war, has suffered significant losses, including the loss of its flagship, the missile cruiser Moskva.

In early July, the fleet’s deputy commander responsible for marine infantry, Mikhail Gudkov, was killed in a Ukrainian missile strike in the Kursk region.

In a video message, Putin described the navy as the “pride and achievement of the fatherland.”

However, the naval parade planned for Sunday – an annual event Putin started in 2017 – was cancelled for security reasons, unlike the military exercise.

In the region surrounding St Petersburg, more than 10 drones were reportedly shot down in the morning, according to official information. Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko said a woman in the Lomonosov district was slightly injured by falling drone debris.

St Petersburg’s Pulkovo Airport was closed for several hours in the morning for take-offs and landings. The Russian military reported the downing of 99 drones nationwide.

Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia have increased in recent months. These are a response to the constant shelling of Ukrainian cities and towns by the Russian military as part of Russia’s war against its neighbour, ordered by Putin in 2022.

Despite increasing attacks on its own territory, the Kremlin has maintained that Moscow is on track to achieve all its war objectives.

Putin called this year’s Navy Day a wonderful holiday, but added, “It is right that we spend the holiday in a combat and working atmosphere, with everyone in their place, and the fleet demonstrating its combat potential and quality.”

The head of the Kremlin followed most of the naval manoeuvres via video transmission from the navy’s main headquarters in St Petersburg.