MOSCOW. May 25 (Interfax-AVN) - A special program has been passed for development of the Caspian Flotilla, Rear Admiral Anatoly Shlemov, head of the Defense Ministry's department for orders and supply of ships, naval armament and military hardware, has said.
"The Tatarstan missile and artillery ship of Project 11661 displacing 1,900 tonnes was received in 2003 in the framework of this program. It has no rivals in the region as far as combat efficiency is concerned. The navies of Iran, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan will not have a ship of such class in the near future, and in the remote future, too," Shlemov said in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda daily.
The Tatarstan's draught makes it possible to operate it in any part of the Caspian Sea, he said.
Moreover, the Almaz shipyard in St. Petersburg is building small artillery ships of Project 21630 for the Caspian Flotilla. One of them was laid down in January last year and another one (first mass-produced one) on February 25, 2005. The first ship will start tests already this year, Shlemov noted.