U.S. Currently Unconcerned by Syria-Bound Russian Ships

The United States is aware of a Russian naval flotilla headed for a Syrian port but does not yet see cause for concern, the White House said Tuesday.

"We currently have no reason to believe this move is anything out of the ordinary but we refer you to the Russian government for more details," Erin Pelton, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, told Agence France Presse.

Russia has sent a naval flotilla of seven warships led by an anti-submarine destroyer to its naval base at the Syrian port of Tartus, the Interfax news agency reported Tuesday.

Russia has been bitterly criticized by the West for failing to cut military ties with Syria despite the conflict between the regime and opposition rebels that has claimed thousands of lives.