NATO surveillance plane to see what Russia's up to Mediterranean

On the Greek island of Crete, a NATO surveillance plane prepares to take off and see what Russia is up to in the Mediterranean, where Moscow and the US have boosted forces amid the war raging in Ukraine.

As Russian forces continue to pound Ukraine, the goal is to show the Russians that the eastern Mediterranean is a NATO area, says lieutenant Johann, the aircraft's chief officer who asked that his surname not be used.

The Ukraine war has seen Washington and Moscow increase their presence in the area to levels never seen in a generation.

Ukraine has changed things. The Americans are back. Since the Cold War, this hasn't been the case, says Thibault Lavernhe, regional communication officer of the French army in the Mediterranean.

Russia has doubled its military capacity in the area in terms of destroyers, frigates and submarines, if not tripled, says Lavernhe.

According to the French foreign ministry, the Mediterranean is of strategic importance to the world economy, with 65 percent of EU energy supplies and 30 percent of global commerce passing through the sea with shores in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

There are currently around 20 Russian warships in the sea, Lavernhe told AFP.

The build up came after the Syrian civil war when Moscow - after he rode to the rescue of the embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - began deploying warships in the port of Tartus, the Russian navy's sole repair and refueling base in the Mediterranean.

Russian units have been strengthened after the invasion of Ukraine, military observers say.

Russian naval forces are now spreading to the west of Crete, west of Greece in the Peloponnese, and in the northern Aegean Sea near the Black Sea, says Lavernhe.

The French officer said that the US military forces in the area under NATO command are broadly the same but the war has led to the US double its presence by relocating ships from the Atlantic Ocean.

Where there are American forces, the Russians are there too, Lavernhe says.

Russian ships are positioned to monitor the activity of allied forces, he said.

NATO monitors all activity in the Mediterranean from planes like the glass-nosed Atlantique 2 on Crete's base of Souda.

A long-range patrol aircraft made by France's Dassault is equipped with radar, a 3,200 millimetre camera and systems capable of detecting magnetic fields and picking up nearby radar signals.

The plane's tactical coordinator, Laurent, explains that the aircraft will pick up all vessels encountered during its flight and determine their national affiliation.

All vessels of over 12 metres must have an active tracking beacon, he says, discreetly closing a folder with the image of a Russian landing craft on one of the pages.

If that is not the case, we hail them to determine whether they are smugglers or other illegal activities.

This information is then shared with the French general staff and NATO command.

Johann believes that the plane's range allows it to fly as far as the Black Sea, but that could potentially antagonise the Russians.

We are not in a crisis situation in this area. He said that the goal is to safeguard European security.