Royal Navy scrambled to monitor Russian ship loitering in UK waters

HMS Dragon closely monitored the Yuri Ivanov (Picture: SWNS)

A Russian intelligence gathering ship was caught loitering in waters off Scotland for the second time this month,sparking a major Royal Navy response.

Warships and helicopters scrambled to monitor the Yuri Ivanov in the Outer Hebrides shortly after a major NATO exercise,Formidable Shield,wrapped up nearby.

HMS Dragon,a Portsmouth-based Type 45 destroyer,watched on and launched Merlin helicopters to collect information from above,until the Yuri Ivanov headed north towards its home in the Arctic.

Meanwhile,HMS Ledbury,HMS Hurworth and 814 Naval Air Squadron were activated to shadow RFN Stoikiy as the Russian warship sailed west through the Channel to meet two merchant vessels,Sparta IV and General Skobelev,which were returning from the Mediterranean.

It comes shortly after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP to protect working people and deliver on promised plans.

Last month,HMS Ledbury tracked the Russian ship RFN Stroikiy Picture: SWNS)

Lieutenant Commander Craig Clark,Commanding Officer of HMS Ledbury,said: ‘Escorting Russian vessels through UK waters is a vital demonstration of our unwavering commitment to national security.

‘Whilst the Hunt-class is uniquely equipped for mine and sea-bed warfare,maritime security remains a crucial task that any Royal Navy warship is trained to undertake.’

Russian ships have veered a bit too close for comfort to UK borders as of late,and a second,more sinister fleet sparked warnings about a potential environmental disaster.

Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ of oil tankers is designed to avoid sanctions and poses a serious threat to the UK and other international waters.

Members of parliament previously wrote a letter to Foreign Secretary David Lammy warning of the potentially catastrophic dangers from the ‘ticking time-bomb’ vessels.

Labour‘s Uma Kumaran and Tim Roca have called for ‘shadow-free’ zones to be established in British waters to protect coastal communities and marine ecosystems.

Mr Lammy issued a major sanctions package of the Russian shadow fleet late last year,but worried voices are still being raised in Westminster.

These ‘shadow’ ships are often ageing vessels which have convoluted ownership,often in a bid to evade Western sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Mr Roca said: ‘With approximately 10 such tankers passing through the English Channel every day,the risk to our waters and coastal communities from these dangerous ships is immense. The UK should lead the way in enforcing maritime safety and environmental protection.’

An investigation by the Kyiv School of Economics Institute (KSE) found Russia built its shadow fleet and found it bought older vessels for a cheaper price,largely ignoring maritime safety laws.

‘The weak link in the regulatory framework,together with the

dramatically expanded role of shadow tankers in the Russian oil trade means that a major environmental disaster is only a question of time.’

Several close calls with these ageing ships have been reported in recent years,including one collision in Denmark last March.