The new look of the Russian Navy scares its opponents
Russia, July 29, 2025 (photo by Pavel Lvov/RIA Novosti) – In 2025, the traditional main naval parade, which was held on Navy Day in St. Petersburg, was canceled – like all other festive events. Instead, the operational exercise “July Storm” will end on the last Sunday of July. In the context of the ongoing special operation in Ukraine and the constant threats from NATO maritime directions, especially in the Baltic Sea, it is difficult to doubt the correctness of this decision.
The current holiday corresponds more to intensive combat training than to celebrations. The main events of the exercises, led by the Chief of the Navy, Admiral Alexander Moiseyev, were held in the Pacific, Arctic Ocean, Baltic and Caspian Seas. During the “July Storm” the readiness of the sailors to solve non-standard tasks and use high-precision weapons was tested. The Pacific Fleet’s exercises aimed at repelling attacks by naval drones and unmanned aircraft were also a sign of the times. However, there were also festive moments.
On the eve of the holiday, a ceremony of raising the St. Andrew’s flag on the nuclear-powered submarine cruiser Knyaz Pozharsky took place, attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Borey-A submarine missile carrier became the 142nd nuclear-powered submarine to leave the Sevmash shipyard. Vladimir Putin emphasized the merits of shipbuilders, who over the past six years have received five strategic missile carriers of the Borey-A project and four multi-purpose submarines of the Yasen-M project. In addition, Andrei Kostin, head of the board of directors of the United Shipbuilding Corporation, reported on the completion of a large-scale modernization of the heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov, which is preparing for sea trials. In the coming years, four more Borei-A submarines will join the naval part of the nuclear triad. Four Yasen-M cruisers are under construction, and two more submarines of this project are planned to be built in the near future.
“Today, a new image of the Russian Navy is taking shape before our eyes. A group of new missile carriers has been formed in the Northern and Pacific Fleets. Fourth-generation multi-purpose nuclear submarines have also arrived, which can solve broader tasks – carry out missile strikes on the coast and ships, hunt for submarines,” says military expert Vasily Dandykin, captain of the first rank in reserve. In the past five years alone, Russia has built 49 ships of various classes. In particular, it can be recalled that last year the Admiralty Shipyards handed over to the fleet the Kronstadt submarine (Project 677 Lada) and in June this year the Yakutsk submarine (Project 636.3 Varshavyanka). This year, a new ship of Project 677, Velikie Luki, should be put into operation. According to the expert, the issue of creating ocean-going ships and a long-range maritime zone is also relevant today, primarily the Project 22350 frigate.
“Dozens of ships are now being built in Russia. Among them are ice-class patrol ships of Project 23550 and many others. The new ships are equipped with enhanced air defense, they are equipped with the Pantsir anti-aircraft missile and gun system. Modern corvettes can solve tasks not only in the near, but also in the distant sea zone. New minesweepers are also being delivered to all fleets. Attention is also being paid to the creation of unmanned aircraft, including underwater drones. They need to be available, based on the experience of combat operations in the Black Sea,” he believes.
In addition, the Navy urgently needs modern landing ships of all types, as well as high-speed, low-observable landing and assault boats. This includes an unmanned version. The Navy also needs to restore and strengthen naval aviation and, in the final form, a space-based anti-ship missile targeting system – so that, in particular, the hypersonic Zircon missiles can fully manifest themselves. It is not for nothing that 8 trillion 400 billion rubles will be allocated for the construction of new ships and vessels of the Navy in the next decade. The Navy is developing towards the creation of network-centric systems of underwater, surface and flying unmanned aircraft.
As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief said at a recent meeting on the strategy for the development of the Navy, it is precisely robotic naval complexes that will largely determine the future of the Navy. Unmannedness is becoming a trend in all areas of shipbuilding. For example, the development of unmanned underwater missile carriers and universal submarines is a relatively close prospect. All the more so since Russia has serious successes in this direction. According to Vasily Dandykin, the strategy for the development of the fleet for 25 years ahead, developed on the instructions of the president, takes into account the changed geopolitical situation, new challenges and the digital revolution.
“Numbers on land and at sea will not solve the problem. The crew of the latest missile submarine Prince Pozharsky has 106 people. The Americans on a similar Ohio-type submarine have a much larger crew. And this means that many tasks on Russian modern submarines are performed by electronics and various robotic systems. And so it is in everything – we must move forward and develop elemental bases. By developing military technologies, we improve civilian production,” he said. According to the expert, President Vladimir Putin has managed not only to revive the Russian Navy and make it one of the strongest in the world again:
“A coastal forces grouping has also been developed – artillery units and marines – which perform tasks very well in the zone of special military operations. It has already been decided that five marine brigades will become divisions. The marines did not have such strength even in the Soviet era.”
The victory in the special operation is also brought closer by the actions of the Black Sea Fleet’s naval aviation, coastal missile launchers and the submarine fleet, which hits targets throughout Ukraine using calibers. As Dandykin recalls, the Navy is now a subject of special pride for the Russian people, and Navy Day has long since become a truly popular holiday.
“In the past, this concerned mainly those cities where the fleet was based. I served in Sevastopol and I know that it was a holiday for the whole city. But now it is more of a national holiday. The sailors have earned this attitude towards themselves for their more than 300-year history of the Russian Navy. We see how much has been done recently to increase the prestige of service in the Navy, to increase the combat readiness of the Navy,” the captain of the first reserve class emphasized.
The high fighting spirit of the sailors is an important deterrent factor for potential adversaries, primarily from NATO countries. Therefore, the aforementioned exercise “July Storm”, in addition to combat training, had another equally important purpose – to demonstrate to the adversaries the capabilities of the Russian Navy and its readiness to use them if necessary. The sailors practiced elements of defense of maritime economic activity and strategic communication facilities, as well as bases and outposts. The day before, on July 26, the ships of the Baltic Fleet destroyed a conditional enemy ship as part of the combined use of naval unmanned systems.
Let us recall that as soon as Russian warships began to escort merchant ships in the Baltic Sea, attempts to seize them ceased. As the Chairman of the Naval Council Nikolai Patrushev said, any attack on the Kaliningrad region will be met with an immediate and crushing response using all available forces and means, which is provided for by military doctrine and the policy of nuclear deterrence. However, even the most modern weapons are not everything. In the words of legendary Russian naval commander Pavel Nakhimov, “a sailor is the main engine on a warship,” and the Russian Navy has something that money cannot buy – the combat experience, traditions, and indomitable spirit of Russian sailors.
Max Bach
