Russia's naval battlegroup in the Mediterranean Sea is preparing to head home after completing its mission in Syria.
Beleaguered Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov will be among the first to go, along with its accompanying ships.
Armed Forces Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov announced on Friday that the Admiral Kuznetsov's depature will be followed by the missile cruiser Peter the Great and the rest of the naval battlegroup.
The aircraft carrier begins its transition on Friday and is headed toward the Russian port of Severomorsk, a town in the Murmansk region where Russia's Northern Fleet is headquartered.
"If there are no other problems, and if they go directly, it will take up to ten days to be in Severomorsk," said the former Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Navy, Admiral Viktor Kravchenko.
The carrier's operation in Syria has been fraught with problems, with the ship losing two aircraft due to malfunctions with the carrier's arresting gear. The remaining planes were later redeployed to an airfield inland.
