UK Tracks Two Years of Increased Russian Naval Activity

The UK’s Ministry of Defence reported details on additional sightings of Russian vessels in its waters after reporting a recent incident with a Russian spy ship. It says the UK has seen a 30 percent increase in Russian vessels in UK waters in the past two years.

The Royal Navy maintains regular patrols and has frequently reported dispatching vessels to shadow Russian vessels primarily transiting the English Channel. The most recent incident, which took place in the last two weeks, involved a Russian corvette and a tanker as they sailed through the Dover Strait and westward through the English Channel.

RFN Stoikiy was observed off the UK Coast traveling with the tanker Yelnya (7,230 dwt), which is part of a class of replenishment oiler built for the Soviet Navy between 1967 and 1972. The tanker is reported to have been commissioned in 1969 and remains active, supporting the Russian fleet. Stoikiy is newer, a 2,200-ton displacement warship commissioned in 2014.

HMS Severn was dispatched to shadow the movements of the Russian vessels. The 1,700-ton displacement offshore patrol vessel was operational for the Royal Navy between 2003 to 2017 and recommissioned for duty in 2021, based in Portsmouth. The Ministry and Royal Navy report that the vessel tracked the Russian vessels and later handed them off to a NATO vessel off the coast of Brittany, but continued to observe from a distance. Despite the extensive media coverage, the Royal Navy did confirm the Russian vessels followed recognized maritime routes.

The incident also drew more interest because it came days after the Ministry accused a Russian spy ship of lingering near the UK and directing lasers at RAF planes. They said HMS Somerset and other civilian ships experienced GPS jamming in the area around the Russian vessel Yantar. The Ministry called the Russian vessel's behavior “unprofessional,” saying it intended to be “disruptive and a nuisance.”

 

 

“The Royal Navy always has a ship held at notice to conduct these missions, and HMS Somerset has been called upon to shadow the Yantar on two occasions this year as it entered UK waters,” said Commanding Officer, Commander Matt Millyard. “In the most recent operation, HMS Somerset, working alongside RAF maritime patrol aircraft, maintained 24-hour surveillance of the Yantar to provide evidence of their activities.”

Yantar, they report, was tracked for eight days. The vessel finally moved northward towards the Faroe Islands. In January, HMS Somerset and HMS Tyne also shadowed the “research ship” through the English Channel and Dover Strait.

HMS Somerset, the report has spent the last year operating in the North Atlantic as part of the ongoing patrol efforts. They also noted that three P-8 Poseidon aircraft from the RAF have been deployed to Keflavik Air Base in Iceland in the latest overseas deployment so far of the RAF P-8 fleet. They are supporting NATO and have been used for patrolling for Russian ships and submarines in the North Atlantic and Arctic.

Less than a month ago, the Royal Navy reported HMS Duncan had tracked the movements of the Russian destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov. Along with the frigate HMS Iron Duke, they were also dispatched to monitor the Russian Kilo-class submarine Novorossiysk.

The Ministry of Defence used the incidents to highlight that the UK is stepping up on defense and security. They said it is backed by the UK’s biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the Cold War, including £4 billion on boosting drone capabilities and over £1 billion on strengthening air and missile defenses.