The Russian ship Sparta en route to Syria broke down at sea. He was supposed to take military equipment

The Russian cargo ship Sparta was sent to transport weapons and military equipment from bases in… Syria. As Ukrainian intelligence learned, the ship suffered a breakdown at sea and the fuel system of the main engine was damaged.

“The Russian crew is trying to solve the problem and is drifting in the open sea near Portugal,” said a post on Telegram on Monday.

Ukrainian intelligence also reported that “the remnants of the Russian contingent in Syria have completed their withdrawal from remote areas of the country and are now in only two places – the Humeimim air base in Latakia and the port of Tartus.”

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“Russia has started transporting some of its weapons and equipment by sea from the port of Tartus to Libya. The Russian army in Syria is also actively discussing the alleged demand of the new government in Damascus addressed to Moscow for the complete withdrawal of the military contingent from Syrian territory no later than February 20 2025,” the announcement said.

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For years, Russia has used the Humeim air base in Latakia and the Tartus naval base in exchange for the support it provided to Bashar al-Assad. After the dictator was overthrown he found refuge in Moscow.

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Russian forces appeared in Syria in 2015, when President Vladimir Putin decided to support the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the fight against “terrorist groups”, including the so-called Islamic State. At that time, the West criticized Russia for the fact that most of the airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force were aimed at the Syrian opposition.

According to the agreement signed by Assad in 2017, the Russian army could stay at the Humeimim airport and the port of Tartus until 2066.

According to the BBC's Russian section, there could be over seven thousand Russian soldiers in Syria. “The contingent was equipped with a large amount of weapons and military equipment, including armored vehicles, anti-aircraft missile systems, tanks, engineering equipment and others,” wrote the BBC's Russian section after the overthrow of the Bashar al-Assad regime.