A Russian warship has been continuously monitored in UK waters by the Royal Navy for an entire month.
The frigate Admiral Grigorovich was watched by patrol ships HMS Tyne, HMS Mersey and HMS Severn as it sailed to the west of the UK and through the North Sea in April.
The Russian ship also sailed close to the Galloper wind farm off the Suffolk coast and stopped to take on fuel and supplies near ‘key national infrastructure’ 30km off the coast nearby.
Patrol ships, tankers and Wildcat helicopters from the Royal Navy have been tracking the movements of the Admiral Grigorovich.
‘There was not one day last month when the Russian warship, her supporting vessels or the ships she was tasked with escorting were not closely watched by Royal Navy air or sea power,’ a spokesperson said.
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‘The Grigorovich moved between the North Sea and Western Approaches, escorting Russian-flagged vessels heading to and from the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Baltic.
‘She accompanied one submarine and around six merchant and support vessels during the month. The frigate also paused to take on fuel and supplies near key national infrastructure, including the Galloper wind farm off the Suffolk coast.’
Late last year, a Russian warship and a tanker were spotted sailing through the English Channel.
The HMS Severn intercepted the RFN Stoikiy, a corvette and Yelnya, a tanker, as they all sailed west through the Dover Strait into the English Channel.
There was no incident reported by the HMS Severn, which later handed over monitoring duties to a NATO ally off the coast of Brittany but continued to observe from a distance, the Ministry of Defence said.
Another Russian ship – the Yantar, used to map undersea cables – appeared close to UK waters for a second time last year as well.
After a Royal Navy frigate and RAF P8 planes were sent to keep track of the ship, Russian crew members took the ‘deeply dangerous’ move of pointing lasers at the pilots.
John Healey told the press conference his message to Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin was: ‘We see you, we know what you’re doing, and if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.’