MoD investigating reports Russian warship fired warning shots near yacht in Channel
The Ministry of Defense (MoD) is investigating reports that a Russian warship fired warning shots near a British-registered yacht in the English Channel.
A Russian frigate named Admiral Grigorovich was involved in the incident, which occurred between the Isle of Wight and Normandy at around 11.40 on Tuesday.
It was learned that there was no injury or damage to the yacht.
A (MoD) spokesman said: “We are investigating reports of an incident on the canal.”
British authorities received reports from a British-registered yacht that the Russian ship had fired warning shots from approximately 500 yards (457 meters) away; This is a relatively close distance by cruise standards.
The incident reportedly occurred outside UK territorial waters, approximately 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight.
Coming days after Royal Marines Commandos We captured a Russian shadow fleet tanker carrying sanctions Oil was discovered in the Channel on Sunday, in the first operation of its kind carried out by the British army.
However, it appears that British officials do not see this incident as connected to Sunday’s operation.
Russian warships pass through the Channel regularly and are routinely monitored by Royal Navy ships.
It is understood the frigate thought to have been involved in Tuesday’s incident was being followed by HMS Mersey.
On Monday, the Navy said Admiral Grigorovich was tracked by HMS Tyne and HMS Mersey over the weekend after she was spotted off the coast of Brest, France, in what was described as a “routine operation”.
Last week, a NATO source told BBC Verify that Admiral Grigorovich had been ordered by Moscow to escort shadow fleet ships across the Channel.
The frigate is understood to have been operating in the area for several months and has been repeatedly re-supplied by a repair ship.
Satellite images reviewed by BBC Verify show repair ship PM-82 operating between the Channel and the North Sea in recent months.
NATO officials believe that PM-82 provided Admiral Grigorovich with food, water and other supplies, allowing him to remain at sea for extended periods of time and ferry Russian convoys through the Channel.
In April the frigate was reported to be escorting six shadow fleet ships through the waterway while being monitored by the Royal Navy.
While Tuesday’s incident has so far been treated as an isolated incident by the Ministry of Defence, it comes at a time of rising tensions with Russia over Britain’s continued support for Ukraine.
