The U.K. Ministry of Defense is investigating reports that a Russian Navy warship fired warning shots near a British-registered yacht in the English Channel, according to a statement provided to TWZ today. The reported encounter is the latest in a series of increasingly tense interactions between the United Kingdom and Russia.
The incident reportedly occurred around 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England, and outside British territorial waters. According to the Ministry of Defense, the initial report came from the crew of the U.K.-registered yacht, which alleged that a Russian warship fired warning shots at a distance of approximately 500 yards.
According to the Press Association, the incident occurred at around 11:40 a.m. local time, in waters between the Isle of Wight and Normandy.
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson confirmed to us that they are investigating reports of the incident, but stressed that the investigation remains in its early stages.
“No injuries or damage have been reported by the yacht, which is continuing its journey,” the spokesperson added.
The Royal Navy was already shadowing the Russian vessel when the alleged incident occurred, the ministry confirmed.
“HMS Mersey was monitoring the Russian vessel at the time. We cannot provide further comment while investigations are ongoing. A seaboat from HMS Tyne has visited the yacht to gather details and check that they are safe.”
Both HMS Mersey and HMS Tyne are River class offshore patrol vessels, frequently used to shadow Russian and other warships passing through the Channel, which is widely considered the busiest shipping area in the world.
According to unconfirmed reports, the Russian warship said to be involved is the Admiral Grigorovich, the lead ship of its class, which is also known to NATO as the Krivak V class. The frigate is seen at the top of this story, during an encounter with Royal Navy vessels earlier this year, again in the English Channel.
The Ministry of Defence also sought to distance the incident from another recent maritime security operation in the Channel, in which British forces boarded the Smyrtos, a sanctioned shadow-fleet oil tanker, which was sailing under a false Cameroonian flag.
The boarding of the Smyrtos by Royal Marine Commandos and specially trained law enforcement officers from the National Crime Agency last Sunday was the first U.K.-led operation of its kind. The six-hour military operation also involved Chinook, Merlin, and Wildcat helicopters, a Royal Air Force P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, as well as the frigate HMS Sutherland and the mine countermeasures vessel HMS Ledbury.
It remains unclear exactly which Russian Navy vessel was involved in the incident today, what prompted the alleged warning shots, or whether any communication took place between the warship and the yacht before the incident.
We will update this post as we find out more about today’s incident.
UPDATE: 2:45 PM EDT –
There is growing speculation that the Russian warship involved in the incident may have suffered some kind of mechanical failure or difficulty at sea.
The U.K. Shadow Defense Secretary James Cartlidge said the incident was “very concerning” and the United Kingdom should “be in no doubt that Russia poses a direct threat.”
The leader of the Liberal Democrat party, Ed MacCleary, said: “These reports are extremely concerning. Russia is quite literally on our doorstep. Aggression and intimidation from Putin in the English Channel cannot be tolerated.”
UPDATE: 2:50 PM EDT –
According to BBC News, the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich fired warning shots after the two vessels came into close contact.
The broadcaster further reports that the “small, motorless yacht had drifted towards the warship in foggy conditions after setting off from the United Kingdom.”
The BBC cites the Russian Ministry of Defense as saying that the yacht had been on a “dangerous approach” towards the warship, and its crew fired into its path “with rifles” after making several attempts to contact it over the radio and after launching warning flares.
The Russian Ministry of Defense further claimed that its sailors had acted in “strict accordance with international shipping regulations.”
A U.K. government source told the BBC that a couple in their 60s were onboard the yacht at the time. They said they did not hear when the Russian frigate sounded its horn.
There have also been unconfirmed reports identifying the yacht involved:
UPDATE: 2:55 PM EDT –
Data obtained by BBC Verify suggests that the Admiral Grigorovich has been in the Channel for an extended period, repeatedly being re-supplied by a repair vessel, so that it can escort shadow-fleet vessels through these waters.
Based on satellite images it has reviewed, the BBC says the frigate has been re-supplied by the PM-82, an Amur class repair ship, while operating between the Channel and the North Sea in recent months.
In April, the frigate was reported to have escorted six shadow fleet vessels through the Channel while being monitored by the Royal Navy.
UPDATE: 3:00 PM EDT –
At least one Royal Air Force P-8 Poseidon has transited from its base in Scotland to patrol the Channel this evening, according to publicly available flight-tracking data. The maritime patrol aircraft is very likely tasked wth monitoring Russian naval activity in the area.
More details of the incident have been reported by Deborah Haynes, the security and defense editor at Sky News.
Haynes writes on X that the Russian frigate “fired a couple of warning shots” close to the yacht in the Channel after also sounding an alert to avoid it sailing too close. Citing an unnamed defense source, Haynes reports that it is understood that the Admiral Grigorovich appears to be having difficulty controlling its movements, perhaps due to a propulsion issue.
The warning shots “were certainly not fired at the yacht,” the same source said.
Additionally, while the Admiral Grigorovich has been escorting Russian-flagged vessels through the Channel in recent months, Haynes writes that it was not involved with escorting the Smyrtos, which was boarded by British forces at the weekend.
UPDATE: 3:05 PM EDT –
After reaching out to the U.K. Ministry of Defense for more clarification, TWZ received the following from a spokesperson:
“Following attempts to contact a British vessel in the Channel, the Grigorovich fired warning shots. These were not aimed at the vessel and were an attempt to prevent a possible collision.”
“We assess that this is an isolated incident and not linked to the UK’s interception of the Smyrtos this weekend. HMS Mersey has been monitoring the Russian vessel and support has been provided to the crew of the yacht.”
“We assess that the Grigorovich was displaying to other vessels that it was drifting rather than being manoeuvred under power, which may have made her feel more vulnerable, leading to warning shots being fired.”
“We assess that after sounding warnings, the Grigorovich fired several warning shots, but these were not aimed at the yacht.”
The spokesperson told us that they further assess that the shots fired were single rounds, rather than automatic fire.
Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
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