“We know what you are doing,” London tells Putin

British Defense Minister John Healey warned Russian President Vladimir Putin this Wednesday January 22 after a “Russian spy ship” was spotted on Monday in the Channel by the Royal Navy.

The Russian military ship “Yantar” had already been detected a few weeks ago above submarine cables in British waters, explains the Ministry of Defense in a press release.

“My message to President Putin is clear. We know what you are doing, and we will not hesitate to take strong action to protect the UK.”said John Healey.

The Russian ship, which is now in the North Sea, is “used to gather intelligence and map the UK’s critical underwater infrastructure”he affirmed in front of the deputies.

The Yantar entered British waters on Monday. “Over the past two days, the Royal Navy has deployed [navires, NDLR] “HMS Somerset” and “HMS Tyne” to monitor it every minute in our waters”indicated the minister.

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In November, a Royal Navy submarine surfaced near the Yantar, “to make it clear that we had secretly monitored his every move”he added. It then headed towards the Mediterranean, according to John Healey.

Suspicions of acts of “hybrid warfare”

On the French side, the maritime prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea (Prémar) indicated that “French military means” were also mobilized in monitoring the “Yantar” but that the ship “had no proven hostile intent”. “It regularly happens that there is a passage of a Russian vessel and there is always close surveillance which is put in place with security means and mobilization of the maritime chain”added Prémar to AFP.

The army headquarters in Paris clarified to AFP that “On its return from deployment in the Mediterranean, the Russian ship “Yantar” was accompanied from the northwest of Spain by a French frigate before being relayed by an English vessel. This escort was carried out in perfect coordination with the allies present in the area”.

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United Kingdom “plays a leading role in combating the growing threat that Russia poses to offshore infrastructure in European seas”indicated for its part the British Ministry of Defense. The Royal Air Force will thus provide aircraft to a new NATO deployment intended to strengthen the protection of offshore infrastructure in the Baltic Sea.

Several underwater telecommunications and power cables have been damaged in recent months in the Baltic Sea. European leaders and experts suspect acts of “hybrid warfare” orchestrated by Russia.

Leaders of NATO countries bordering this vast maritime space met last week in Finland to discuss ways to increase security there. NATO will deploy ships, planes and drones in the Baltic Sea in response to this damage to submarine cables, announced its Secretary General, Mark Rutte.