Sailors from the Pacific Fleet, veterans of the Great Patriotic War, members of the Ussuri Cossack army, and young people gathered to commemorate the heroes of the Varyag.
On February 9, 1904, after being notified that the Russian-Japanese war had begun, the commanders of the Varyag cruiser and the Koreyets gunboat made an unsuccessful attempt to break from the Korean port of Chemulpo to Port Arthur (Chinese port of Lushun). In a naval battle, the two Russian warships fought a Japanese heavy cruiser, five light cruisers and eight destroyers.
The Varyag cruiser, which was badly damaged and lost 122 sailors, and the Koreyets gunboat had to return to Chemulpo port. Both vessels were sunk at the port to avoid being captured by the enemy. The Russian sailors who survived the battle returned to Russia through neutral ports.
A detachment of warships from the Russian Pacific Fleet is currently heading from Vladivostok to the South Korean port of Inchon (Chemulpo).
The official friendly visit under the flag of Admiral Viktor Fedorov, the commander of the Pacific Fleet, will last from February 10 to February 15. A joint Russian-South Korean naval exercise in communication, maneuvering and assisting ships in distress will be held after the end of the visit.
