MOSCOW. Oct 12 (Interfax) - The ships of the Arctic group of the Russian Northern Fleet have arrived at Alexandra Land (Franz Josef Land archipelago), where a landing exercise will be held, the Northern Fleet press service said on Monday.
"The Arctic group of the Northern Fleet, under the command of Vice Adm. Oleg Golubev, deputy commander of the Northern Fleet, has arrived at Alexandra Land, Franz Josef Land archipelago, in the Barents Sea. The ships and the vessels anchored in the Semyon Dezhnyov Strait and started preparations for landing a marine force on an unequipped coast," the statement said.
The ships reached Alexandra Land along the northern part of the Kara and Barents Seas, passing by Severnaya Zemlya and some islands of Franz Josef Land from the north, where they examined several islands. The ships entered the Dezhnyov Strait using the deepest strait of the Barents Sea, the Cambridge Strait.
"A group of hydrographers and members of the comprehensive expedition of the Northern Fleet and the Russian Geographical Society to the Arctic stayed in the Cambridge Strait on the Ilya Muromets icebreaker. They will conduct hydrologic and oceanographic studies and measurements in the course of several days," the fleet said.
In the course of the mission, which started on August 5, the ships and vessels of the Arctic group of the Northern Fleet have covered some 8,000 nautical miles and held several exercises to ensure the security of the economic activities of the Russian Federation.