Map Shows Putin’s Warships in Asia Amid War in Europe

A map by Newsweek shows how President Vladimir Putin’s Russia has been flexing its naval muscles in the Indo-Pacific region in recent months while Moscow’s forces simultaneously wage war on Ukraine.

Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for further comment by email.

Why It Matters

Russia’s Pacific Fleet sent a naval group to visit Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand and China from October to December 2024.

Meanwhile, strategic waterways like the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Strait of Malacca are located in the Indian Ocean, making it a key trade route as it accounts for one-third of the world’s bulk cargo traffic and two-thirds of the world’s oil shipments.

What To Know

In early February, the Russian navy dispatched two corvettes, the Rezky and the Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, as well as the fleet oiler Pechenga, from their Far Eastern naval base in the city of Vladivostok for a deployment in the Asia-Pacific region.

This Russian naval task group later transited waters near Japan as it headed southward from the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea in South Korea, to the South China Sea, where the ships conducted air defense exercises.

In mid-February, the Russian ships reached the Indonesian island of Bali for a multilateral naval exercise codenamed Komodo-2025. Ships from the Russian Pacific Fleet previously took part in a bilateral maritime exercise with Indonesia in the archipelagic state in November last year.

Following the end of Komodo-2025, which ran from February 16 to 22, the Russian vessels continued their deployment in the Indian Ocean, where they joined the Maritime Security Belt-2025 drill at the Iranian port of Chabahar from March 10 to 11, along with ships from the Chinese and Iranian navies.

On March 15, the Russian flotilla reached Pakistan, a major non-NATO U.S. ally, becoming the first Russian naval ships to visit the Pakistani port of Karachi in four years. It later took part in the Arabian Monsoon-VI bilateral drill in the North Arabian Sea with Pakistan’s navy.

The next stop for the Russian task group was Chennai in India, where they made a port call from March 26 to April 10. During the visit, the Russian ships took part in the Indra Navy-2025 joint exercise with their Indian counterparts in nearby waters.

After concluding the visit to India, the Rezky, the Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, and the Pechenga visited Chittagong in Bangladesh from April 12 to 14. It was unclear whether they will conduct further port calls or exercises during the deployment.

What People Are Saying

Alexey Kupriyanov, head of Center of the Indo-Pacific Region at the Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said: “Since India’s focus is primarily on the eastern part of the [Indian Ocean], Russian ships in the western part could help fill the vacuum of security there. This will reduce the need for East African countries to seek help from China and the U.S. to combat pirates, smugglers and drug traffickers.”

Japan’s defense white paper 2024 read: “Russia has been conducting intensive military activities in the Far East encompassing the Northern Territories, while continuing its aggression against Ukraine. Russia has also been observed engaging in joint activities with China involving aircraft and vessels.”

The Northern Territories, also known as the Southern Kuril Islands in Russia, are a group of four islands ruled by Moscow captured from Japan following the end of World War II.

What Happens Next

It remains to be seen whether the Russian naval task group will execute any joint operations with the Chinese navy during its homebound voyage. The two navies conducted a series of bilateral military maneuvers in the Pacific Ocean last year, including exercises and patrols.