Moscow
06 January 2017
TASS

General Valery Gerasimov, Russian Chief of the General Staff said on Friday that 'Admiral Kuznetsov' aircraft carrier naval group will be the first to leave the conflict area as per the decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Russian Defense Forces on the reduction of Russian forces from Syria.

The warships of the Northern Fleet’s aircraft carrier task force led by Russia’s sole aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov will be the first to leave the conflict area, Gen. Gerasimov said. The Admiral Kuznetsov carrier will begin Friday moving from the Mediterranean to Severomorsk in Russia's northern Murmansk region, Gerasimov said.

"I would like to thank the staff of the aircraft carrier group for the success in implementing its tasks. I order the senior officer of the mission Vice-Admiral Viktor Sokolov to begin relocating the group today and move to the main fleet base of Severomorsk as per the plan approved earlier," he said.

Commander of Russia’s Group of Forces in Syria Colonel-General Andrei Kartapolov said the aircraft carrier naval group completed its tasks and it is ready for further operations.

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