The Syrian Navy is the smallest of the Syrian Armed Forces

Military of Syria

The Syrian Armed Forces are the military forces of Syria. They consist of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Air Defense Force.-Manpower:The President of Syria is the commander in chief of the Syrian armed forces, comprising some 646,500 troops upon mobilization. The military is a conscripted force;...

. It is under the Syrian Army

Syrian Army

The Syrian Army, officially called the Syrian Arab Army, is the land force branch of the Syrian Armed Forces. It is the dominant military service of the four uniformed services, controlling the senior most posts in the armed forces, and has the greatest manpower, approximately 80 percent of the...

's Latakia regional command with the fleet based in the ports of Baniyas

Baniyas

Baniyas is a city of northwestern Syria, located at the foot of the hill of Qalaat el-Marqab , 55 km to the south of Latakia and 35 km north of Tartous , and a Catholic titular see under the Latin name of Balanea, which is presently vacant.It is famous for its orchards...

, Latakia

Latakia

Latakia, or Latakiyah , is the principal port city of Syria, as well as the capital of the Latakia Governorate. In addition to serving as a port, the city is a manufacturing center for surrounding agricultural towns and villages...

, Minat al Bayda, and Tartus.

History

In 1950 the Syrian Navy was established following the procurement of a few naval vessels from France. The initial personnel consisted of army soldiers who had been sent to French naval academies for training.

During the Yom Kippur War

Yom Kippur War

The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...

 the Israeli Navy sank five Syrian ships without a loss during the Battle of Latakia

Battle of Latakia

The Battle of Latakia was a small but revolutionary naval battle of the Yom Kippur War, fought on 7 October 1973, between Israel and Syria. It was the first naval battle in history to see combat between surface-to-surface missile-equipped missile boats and the use of electronic deception.At the...

. As a result the Syrian Navy remained in port for the rest of the conflict.

Tartus

Tartus hosts a Soviet-era

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 naval supply and maintenance base, under a 1971 agreement with Syria. The base was established during the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

 to support the Soviet Navy's fleet in the Mediterranean Sea. Since Russia forgave Syria of three-fourths of its $13.4 billion Soviet-era debt and became its main arms supplier, Russia and Syria have conducted talks about allowing Russia to develop and enlarge its naval base, so that Russia can strengthen its naval presence in the Mediterranean. Amid Russia's deteriorating relations with the West, because of the 2008 South Ossetia War‎ and plans to deploy a US missile defense shield in Poland, President Assad

Bashar al-Assad

Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...

 agreed to the port’s conversion into a permanent Middle East base for Russia’s nuclear-armed warships. Since 2009, Russia has been renovating the Tartus naval base and dredging the port to allow access for its larger naval vessels.

2011 Syrian Uprising

During the 2011 Syrian uprising, it is claimed that Syrian Navy warships supported a military attack by government forces against rebels in the town of Latakia

Latakia

Latakia, or Latakiyah , is the principal port city of Syria, as well as the capital of the Latakia Governorate. In addition to serving as a port, the city is a manufacturing center for surrounding agricultural towns and villages...

.

Equipment

• Frigates:   2 Petya III
  Petya class frigate
  The Petya Class was the NATO reporting name for a class of light frigates built for the Soviet Navy in the 1960s. The Soviet Designation was Storozhevoi Korabl Project 159.-Design:...
  
  
  • Al Assari 1-508
  • Al Hirasa 2-508
• Missile boats:

  2 Osa I

Osa class missile boat

The Project 205 Tsunami, more commonly known by their NATO reporting name Osa, are a class of missile boats developed for the Soviet Navy in the early 1960s. The Osas are probably the most numerous class of missile boats ever built, with over 400 vessels constructed for both the Soviet Navy and for...

  8 Osa II

Osa class missile boat

The Project 205 Tsunami, more commonly known by their NATO reporting name Osa, are a class of missile boats developed for the Soviet Navy in the early 1960s. The Osas are probably the most numerous class of missile boats ever built, with over 400 vessels constructed for both the Soviet Navy and for...

• Amphibious warfare vessels:

  3 Polnocny B

Polnocny class landing ship

The Polnocny -class ships are amphibious warfare vessels. They were designed in Poland, in cooperation with the Soviet Navy and were built in Poland between 1967 and 2002. They now serve in several different navies, and some have been converted to civilian use...

• Mine warfare vessels :

  1 Sonya class minesweeper

Sonya class minesweeper

The Sonya class were a group of minesweepers built for the Soviet Navy and Soviet allies between 1971 and 1991. The Soviet designation is Project 1265 Yakhont.-Design:...

  3 Yevgenya class minesweeper

Yevgenya class minesweeper

The Yevgenia class are a group of minesweepers built for the Soviet Navy and export customers between 1967 and 1980. The Soviet designation was Project 1258 Korund.-Design:These were small minehunters built for inshore work...

• Naval aviation:
  • 618th Maritime Warfare Squadron

  11 Mil Mi-14PL Haze-A

Mil Mi-14

|-See also:-External links:******...

  2 Kamov Ka-28PL Helix-A

Kamov Ka-27

|-See also:-External links:*...