From the latest edition of the DEBKAfile news letter we have an exclusive. Russian naval forces the vicinity of the eastern Mediterranean being further bolstered.,
"EXCLUSIVE: A sophisticated Russian spy ship deploys off Syria, Lebanon"
15 October.
"The Russian Navy has just moved into position the advanced spy ship Yantar opposite the Lebanese coast at a point midway between Syria and Israel . . . It is therefore located for moving at speed either to Syrian or to Israeli waters. The Balzam-class vessel is 344 ft long, mounts Medium Frequency sonar, High Frequency dipping sonar, Electronic warfare gear to include jammers, interception devices and code-breaking software. These ships were revolutionary when built in the 80s, when they carried not only intercept and direction-finding electronics but also the necessary computing power to feed raw signal data into on-board information processing computers. An Underway replenishment system was installed as well."
I suspect LONG-TERM DEPLOYMENT the mission of which is to support the Northern Fleet of the Russian navy currently en route to Syrian waters.
Yantar NOT the Soviet/Russian electronic warfare "trawler" of a by-gone age. Far more sophisticated!
coolbert.