Overview
- A Russian frigate identified as Admiral Grigorowitsch fired warning shots toward a British-registered yacht in the English Channel on Tuesday, and the yacht’s crew reported no injuries or damage.
- The Royal Navy monitored the frigate with HMS Mersey and sent a small boat from HMS Tyne to check on the yacht after the shots were fired.
- Moscow says it first used signal flares and acoustic warnings before firing small-calibre rounds ‘in the direction of’ the yacht at about 150 metres, while the yacht crew and UK sources put the distance at roughly 450–500 metres.
- The episode came days after British forces intercepted and boarded the tanker Smyrtos as part of sanctions enforcement against Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, and UK leaders have announced further legal and sanctions actions.
- UK and Russian defence ministries have both described the shots as collision-avoidance measures, UK investigators continue to probe the contested accounts, and officials warn the string of encounters raises the risk of miscalculation at sea.