He SAS warship Drakensberg (A301), intended for combat support and resupply of the South African Navy, will visit Cuba and South America at the end of 2024.
The South African government indicated, through Web Defensethat the visit is organized as part of South Africa’s efforts to increase its naval presence in the Atlantic.
Vice Admiral Monde Lobese confirmed that the Drakensberg, also known as “Drakies” or DKB, will participate in exercises in Brazil, in line with the BRICS+ initiative (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates ), and will strengthen military relations with Cuba.
Drakensberg’s voyage will cover nearly 4,200 nautical miles to Brazil and more than an additional 2,600 nautical miles to Cuba.
Lobese did not specify the exact dates of these transits. There are concerns about the availability of parts for the vessel, as Armscor’s tender for spare parts has not yet been responded to.
The Drakensberg, with a capacity of 12,500 tons of total cargo, has been operational intermittently since 2019 and has been used in resupply missions, anti-piracy patrol and disaster relief operations.
In recent days, the Russian nuclear submarine Kazan He left the Bay of Havana after a five-day visit, generating great geopolitical expectation.
The Russian flotilla included the Kazan, the oil tanker Pashin, the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker and the frigate Admiral Gorshkov.
On those same dates, the US government deployed reconnaissance ships and aircraft in the area and announced the arrival of the USS Helenaa fast attack submarine, to Guantánamo Bay.
To “relax” the geopolitical tension in the area, the Canadian government sent the ship HMCS Margaret Brooke on the same dates, which arrived at the Port of Havana on June 14 and returned to its country on Monday the 17th.
The Canadian authorities assured that the visit to the Havana port was carefully planned and announced in advance by the military.
