UK navy intercepts Russian warships in the English Channel: Report
British patrol vessel tracks Russian corvette Stoikiy and tanker Yelnya as they moved west through narrow Dover Strait in recent weeks
File Photo
LONDON
The UK navy has intercepted two Russian naval ships travelling through the English Channel, BBC reported on Sunday, citing the Defense Ministry.
HMS Severn, a British patrol vessel, tracked the Russian corvette Stoikiy and the tanker Yelnya as they moved west through the narrow Dover Strait in recent weeks, according to the BBC.
The ministry said HMS Severn later handed over monitoring duties to a NATO partner near the coast of Brittany in north-west France, but continued to watch the Russian ships “from a distance” and remained prepared “to respond to any unexpected activity.”
The incident adds to a growing number of Russian naval movements near UK waters. Last week, Russian ship Yantar was spotted off Scotland and reportedly used lasers to disrupt Royal Air Force pilots who were monitoring it.
UK Defense Secretary John Healey called the action “deeply dangerous” and warned Russia and President Vladimir Putin: “We see you. We know what you’re doing. We are ready.”
He said Russian vessel activity threatening UK waters had increased by 30% over the past two years and was part of wider “Russian aggression right across the board” affecting Europe, not only Ukraine.
Last week, Healey also said that he had updated the Royal Navy’s rules of engagement so that the UK could follow the Yantar more closely “when it is in our wider waters.”
On Nov. 19, the Russian Embassy in the UK said in a statement it had "taken note of the latest provocative statements" by Healey, adding: "This time, the pretext was the activities of the Russian oceanographic research vessel Yantar operating in international waters."
"The British leadership’s endless accusations and suspicions only cause a smile," the statement continued. "Russia’s actions do not impinge upon the interests of the United Kingdom, nor are they intended to undermine its security. We have no interest in British underwater communications.”
The statement urged the British side to “refrain from taking destructive steps that would only aggravate the crisis on the European continent."
