MILAN — NATO officials have been tracking a decrease in Russia’s naval presence in the Mediterranean, which officials have attributed to readiness problems and the Baltic Sea and High North regions demanding greater attention in Moscow’s eyes.

Gone are the days when Russia positioned one of its largest naval task forces in the Mediterranean, following escalating tensions in 2018 in Syria, deploying at least two submarines and ten surface ships.

According to a NATO official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, these numbers have dropped in recent months, with the Russian Navy averaging only a few maritime assets in the region.

“It is our assessment that the Russian Navy, which is already resource-constraint regarding where to place its assets, is experiencing force-generation challen

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