The Syrian Arab Navy consisted of the navy, coastal defense and naval aviation forces.
Marines The
Syrian Marines followed the forces of
naval infantry, consisting of about 1,500 conscripts, whose primary role was to protect the three military naval bases in the country, which are divided into three units, each of which was to protect one of the bases. These Marines had three amphibious assault ships, each of which can carry 100 soldiers and five tanks. In general, the Syrian Marine Corps did not receive any special or advanced armament and very little training in the use of amphibious ships, and in general its recruits are only ordinary soldiers and do not have any experience in the ways of fighting as Marines. Although the
Soviet Union set up part of
Exercise Zapad-81 (the largest military training exercise ever in the entire history of the Soviet Union, and included the largest amphibious landing operation in its history as well), the Syrian soldiers did not participate. The marines did not participate in any real amphibious naval landing during any of the wars Syria was involved in. Instead, they were used as infantry with a direct ground clash in the
Yom Kippur War and in the
Lebanon Civil War. During the first Gulf War, as part of the
Coalition of the Gulf War, Syria sent marines as a component of its 17,000 soldier contribution, which may mean that it considers them highly experienced soldiers.
Coastal Defense The
Syrian Coastal Defense Forces were placed under the command of the Syrian Arab Navy since 1984. The coastal defense consists of brigade infantry, each of which was responsible for monitoring a specific coastal sector, and in addition to them, there was a battalion that monitors. In addition to these forces, there are two artillery battalions armed with 18 artillery pieces, 130 mm caliber
M-46. The Syrian coastal defense were also armed with
Styx,
Sepal,
YJ-83 and
P-800 Oniks missiles, as well as the
K-300P Bastion-P coastal defense missile system. ==Bases==