CNN
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Russia’s Admiral Gorshkov frigate, armed with Zircon hypersonic missiles, has docked in Cape Town, South Africa. Joint military exercises with South Africa, Russia and ChinaThe Russian Consulate in Cape Town said on Monday.
“The battleship arrived in the Mother City en route to Durban where it will participate in the joint [South Africa]-[China]-[Russia] Naval Exercises Scheduled for February 17-27,” Consul said on Twitter.
The exercise comes as Russia approaches its first anniversary The invasion of Ukraine. It is also an opportunity for Moscow to show that it is not isolated globally despite widespread international condemnation of the attack.
In January, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his South African counterpart Naledi Pandor defended the naval exercises. Talked in Pretoria During Lavrov’s first visit to South Africa since the invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, Russia’s state-owned news agency TASS quoted a source close to Russia’s defense industry as saying that the Admiral Gorshkov frigate “launched a Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic during a joint exercise with the South African and Chinese navies.” will conduct a training launch of the missile.”
According to South Africa, about 350 South African National Defense Force personnel are expected to participate in the joint maritime exercise alongside their Russian and Chinese counterparts. The first exercise between the three navies took place in 2019.
This is the first time that the exercise will involve Admiral Gorshkov frigates carrying the Zircon hypersonic missiles, which First tested in late 2021.
Long-range weapons travel five times the speed of sound and are difficult to detect and intercept.
According to TASS, the frigate was actively involved in testing missiles designed and produced by the Research and Production Association of Machine-Building, part of Russia’s Tactical Missile Corporation.
