Russian frigate fires warning shot at British yacht in the English Channel. Moscow: it’s their fault
There were no injuries and no damage to the yacht. The authorities are reportedly inclined to regard the incident as an isolated case.
Sailors on board a Russian military vessel fired a warning shot at a yacht that had approached their ship in the English Channel, according to UK media reports. The incident took place this morning and involved the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich, which was in the stretch of water between the Isle of Wight and Normandy.
The British Ministry of Defence has stated that it has launched an investigation following reports of the incident. According to reports, a British-flagged yacht reported that the Russian vessel had fired warning shots from a distance of approximately 450 metres, whilst it was 37 kilometres south of the Isle of Wight, outside UK territorial waters. There were no injuries and no damage to the yacht.
The authorities are reportedly inclined to regard the incident as an isolated one. However, it comes against a backdrop of high tension between London and Moscow, particularly following Sunday’s boarding of the Smyrtos in the English Channel by British commandos, an oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ and seized by the London authorities for allegedly breaching the sanctions imposed on Moscow over the war in Ukraine.
Moscow confirms but blames the British side
The Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich fired warning shots after a yacht flying the British flag had come dangerously close to the ship in the English Channel. The Russian Ministry of Defence confirmed this today, placing the blame on the yacht.
Moscow stated that the frigate’s crew had tried several times to contact the yacht, but received no reply. The Russian vessel then fired signal flares and sounded its siren, but the yacht reportedly continued to approach.
