The current Russian activity in the Med was accurately predicted and described in the US Naval Institute Proceedings back in 2013, the source link is:
http://www.usni.org/magazines/proceeding...iterranean
An abstract of the article:
As the U.S. military “rebalances” to the Asia-Pacific theater, the Russian Navy is pivoting back into the same European waters it became very familiar with during the Cold War. Russia apparently is deploying, and intends to continue to deploy, its navy into the vacuum created by the United States’ absence in the Mediterranean Sea. America should respond by adding various ships—an afloat forward-staging base (AFSB) and several littoral combat ships (LCS)—to the guided-missile destroyers (DDGs) we plan to home-port in the European theater in 2014 and 2015.
1 Accepting the realist’s vision of power politics, we are the stage managers of the Russians’ move to the Mediterranean, as our departure from the area triggered their arrival.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, never shy of taking advantage of an opportunity to expand his country’s international influence, became keenly aware of the Mediterranean power vacuum several years ago. He was equally aware that his naval fleet had been emasculated by years of neglect. Naval inventories were a shadow of their former selves, and readiness levels were precariously low. Since then, Russia made sizable improvements to its fleet’s size and readiness and stepped up patrols in the region, roughly coinciding with the escalation of tensions in Syria. During the past calendar year, the Black Sea Fleet alone conducted 17 operational voyages and 39 port visits in the Mediterranean, spending 650 days at sea. 2
In January 2013, Russia conducted its largest naval maneuvers in the Mediterranean since the end of the Cold War. During his visit to the Black Sea Fleet in February, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stressed that the “Mediterranean region was the core of all essential dangers to Russia’s national interests” and that continued fallout from the Arab Spring increased the importance of this region. 3 Shortly thereafter, he showcased a new Russian naval policy by announcing the decision to establish a Navy Department task force in the Mediterranean “on a permanent basis.” 4
Related article in Defense News last year:
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense.../73480280/
A resurgent Russia is creating an "arc of steel" meant to challenge and confront NATO, a top US naval officer warned Tuesday.
"We are observing the manifestation of a more aggressive, more capable Russian Navy," Adm. Mark Ferguson, commander of US Naval Forces Europe and commander of the Allied Joint Force Command in Naples, said in Washington. "It is naval capability focused directly on addressing the perceived advantages of NATO navies. And they are signaling us and warning us that the maritime domain is contested."
Speaking at the Atlantic Council, Ferguson described a revived Russian military that is expanding its capabilities from Cold War days.
"Responsiveness is a new element, as we have seen that Russian actions have fully integrated the elements of speed and strategic surprise," he said, adding that "the language coming from the Russian military reflects the mindset and actions characteristic of direct challenge and confrontation with NATO."
Earlier this year, Ferguson noted, Russia unveiled a new maritime strategy placing "greater emphasis on the seas surrounding Russia, [amid] talks of projection into the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
"They have talked about establishing a permanent presence in the Mediterranean and in breaking out from their perceived military encirclement by NATO military structures, economic sanctions and political isolation."
Ferguson described Russian activity on multiple fronts — reactivating Cold War military bases in the Arctic, reviving capabilities in the Baltic, and the recent deployment of ground, air and sea forces to Syria.
"This remilitarization of Russian security policy is evident by the construction of an arc of steel from the Arctic to the Mediterranean," Ferguson said. "Starting in their new Arctic bases, to Leningrad in the Baltic and Crimea in the Black Sea, Russia has introduced advanced air defense, cruise missile systems and new platforms.
"It is also building the capability to project power in the maritime domain. Their base in Syria now gives them the opportunity to do so in the Eastern Mediterranean.
"This is a sea denial strategy focused on NATO maritime forces. Their intent is to have the ability to hold at risk the maritime forces operating in these areas and thus deter NATO operations."
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