MOSCOW PLANS MAJOR EXERCISES NEAR SYRIA

Russia has announced it will begin a major military drill in the Mediterranean off Syria Saturday as the UN warned a “perfect storm” was brewing in the battle for the country’s last rebel stronghold.

Moscow’s defence ministry said it will deploy 25 ships, including a Marshall Ustinov missile cruiser and 30 jets, for the exercises, which will focus on antiair and anti-submarine defence.

The armada is the biggest task force sent by President Vladimir Putin’s government since Russia’s intervention in Syria’s conflict in 2015.

Dmitry Peskov, pictured, a Kremlin spokesman, said the five-day drills were justified by the situation around Idlib, home to about 2.7 million people.