Russian frigate armed with cruise missiles was reportedly heading to the Mediterranean a day after the first direct military strike by the US against the Syrian regime.

Russian state media reported that the frigate, the Admiral Grigorovich, would call at a logistics base at Tartus, Syria. Russia also pledged to help strengthen Syria’s air defenses after the US strike on the Shayrat airbase in western Syria.

The White House late Friday refused to say whether strike was a one-off action or part of a new strategy designed to hobble the military capabilities of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.