SPARTA II

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Russian transport vessel permitted to enter port of Tartus

On Jan 21, the 'Sparta II' has entered the military unit of the port of Tartus, where the Russian group of troops were waiting for evacuation. It was deemed likely that the ship will retrieve part of the Russian military equipment and machinery gathered in Tartus from across the country. The 'Sparta II' broke from its drift and headed toward the portat approximately 6 p.m. (GMT +3), arriving in Tartus at 8:35 p.m. From Jan 5-8, the ship had been circling approximately five nautical milesoff the coast of Tartus. On Jan 8, reports confirmed that the new Syrian authorities had begun patrolling the waters in the area. Around the same time, the 'Sparta II' moved to a distance of 15.6 nautical miles, just beyond the 12-nautical-mile limit of Syria’s territorial waters. The vessel then shifted closer to the shore once again. The vessel was an active part of the so-called “Syrian Express” and transported weapons to Syria and since 2022 back. The owner is the Russian company Oboronlogistika. In particular, in Aug 2022, the transportation of S-300 air defense systems from Syria to the port of Novorossiysk was recorded. On Dec 13, 2024, the 'Sparta II' left the Russian naval base in Baltiysk. On Jan 6, 2025, it was spotted in the Mediterranean Sea in the Tunisian EEZ, and on Jan 8, the ship had arrived off the Syrian coast. On Dec 24, 2024, the 'Ursa Major', another Russian ship participating in the “Syrian Express,” sank off the coast of Spain after an engine room explosion in international waters in the western part of the Mediterranean Sea, between the city of Aguillas and the city of Oran. Other Russian vessels off the Syrian coast included the frigate 'Admiral Gorshkov' as well as the landing ships 'Ivan Gren' and 'Alexander Otrakovsky'. On Jan. 6 the Russian landing ship 'Admiral Grigorovich was positioned about five miles from the port of Tartus.

Russian military transporters still waiting off Tartus

While the Syrian authorities have allowed civilian ships to enter the military port of Tartus, the ban on Russian warships remains in place. The Egyptian cargo m/v 'Lotus' has entered the port of Tartus. The two Russian transport shoüs 'Sparta' and 'Sparta II' have been waiting in neutral waters for two weeks for permission to remove equipment. They are not allowed to enter the port of Tartus to export Russian military equipment. On Jan 9, the Russian Rear Admiral Valery Varfolomeyev had made another attempt to negotiate the removal of the equipment, but he was not allowed to participate in the negotiations. The evacuated Russian vehicles, weapons and equipment reportedly stretched for almost one kilometer in the port of Tartus. The Russian landing ship "Alexander Otrakovsky" on the outer roadstead of the Tartus port encountered serious technical problems. The second and third fuel tanks started leaking.

SPARTA II 9160994

The "Sloman Provider" has been intercepted as she returned to the UK on Mar 2, 2011, after turning back outside Tripoli harbour. She was met by the UK Border agency cutter HMS "Vigilant" as she entered British waters and was escorted to Harwich harbour where £100 million in Libyan currency in several containers was seized. After a number of containers was offloaded the ship was taken under control of UK Border Agency and moved to a secure location. Libya’s currency is printed in the north east of England and pro-Gaddafi supporters attempted to have £900 million in Libyan dinars transferred to the North African country before the British Treasury stepped in and impounded the money, after an export control order came into force. However, when the "Sloman Provider" sailed with the £100 million on board, the currency order was not yet in effect.