The first part of this series was published in Warship International in 1978, at a time when authoritative published information on Soviet warships was very limited. Some 30 years later and unimaginable at that earlier time, there now is a vast amount of excellent, archival-based historical research in print on Soviet warships, with more appearing all the time. Many Russian and Soviet warships now are much better described and documented than many "Western" warships. Challenges remain, however, in drawing on that large body of new work. Virtually all of it is published in the Russian language, deterring some potential readers. Further, the print runs of many of these works are so small that obtaining copies of certain volumes, much less most or all of them, is difficult. Moreover, the purchase price of some of these books is quite high, reflecting their small market, and shipping costs from Russia, as elsewhere around the world, also have risen dramatically in recent years. The net effect is considered to make the provision of an English language synopsis of this work a potentially valuable contribution to western naval enthusiasts.
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