A crowd of Yangon maritime enthusiasts came out to tour the Russian Navy destroyer Admiral Panteleyev on Saturday, during the ship’s three-day goodwill visit to Myanmar. The ship is the flagship vessel in Russia’s Pacific Fleet.
The ship’s crew offered tours to the public, showing off its arsenal of anti-submarine missiles, surface-to-air missiles, torpedoes, and other weapons.
Visitors said they were pleased about the rare experience.
“I had been invited to study a warship once, but I didn’t take that opportunity. Now, I came here to study it,” Hlaing Township resident Chan Myae Aung told Eleven. “I want to have an experience that I haven’t had before.”
“This was a new experience for me, as it is not easy for us to study warships,” said Kyaw Zin Latt, who learned about the ship’s visit online.
On Dec. 7, Rear Admiral Eduard Mikhaylov, the deputy commander of Russia’s Pacific Fleet, visited the Ayeyawady Naval Regional Command Headquarters for discussions with Myanmar Navy officials on security, waterways, and naval exchanges.
On Dec. 8, a delegation led by the chief of staff of the Myanmar Navy, Major-General Moe Aung, visited the Admiral Panteleyev and had dinner with the Russian admiral and his staff.
Yangon residents welcomed the display of closeness between the navies of the two countries.
“This is a sign of friendship and unity between allies. Myanmar can build warships of their own design in Southeast Asia, but Russia has more advanced technology,” said Kyaw Zin Latt.
Chan Myae Aung said: “Weapons are needed for the security of the country. Russia is one of the allies of Myanmar.”
The Admiral Panteleyev is an Udaloy-class destroyer that was commissioned in 1992. The 163-meter ship has a maximum speed of 35 knots and a range of 10,500 nautical miles.
It departed from Myanmar yesterday.
