In response to the United States tomahawk strikes on the Syrian airfield suspected to have been used to launch chemical attacks last week, Russia has deployed it’s most advanced missile-armed warship back to the Mediterranean Sea. The ship, not previously scheduled to have been in the area where two US ships deployed 59 missiles last week, is reportedly meant to be a “show of force” by the Russians in the wake of the United States actions — strongly condemned by Russian and Syrian forces. Russia had previously stationed the state-of-the-art warship in the Black Sea and its continued presence “would depend on developments in the region.”
Retired US Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, a current CNN analyst, thinks the move is about the Russians being surprised by the United States actions:
“I think the Russians were caught off guard (by the US strikes),” Hertling said. “So they want to make sure they’re tracking those (US) ships.”
The report of the moving of the Russian warship to an area of heightened tensions between the two countries comes as another strike has been made on the town in northwest Syria hit by the deadly chemical attack on Tuesday. CNN is reporting it is not yet clear where the strikes originated, but on reports on Friday indicated that the airfield targeted by the United States was still functional enough to house aircraft that took off from the base just hours after the missiles struck.