UK puts armed forces on patrol across the country in response to increased Russian activity

The UK Armed Forces are on patrol from the English Channel to the High North amid increased Russian activity threatening UK waters.

In the past fortnight, Royal Navy patrol ship HMS Severn intercepted Russian corvette RFN Stoikiy and tanker Yelnya off the UK coast, in a round-the-clock shadowing operation as the Russian vessels sailed through the Dover Strait and westward through the English Channel.

HMS Severn later handed over monitoring duties to a NATO ally off the coast of Brittany, but continued to observe from a distance and remained ready to respond to any unexpected activity.

An increase in Russian activity

This comes as the UK has seen a 30% increase in Russian vessels threatening UK waters in the past two years.

On Wednesday, the Defence Secretary John Healey confirmed that Russian spy ship Yantar – used for gathering intelligence and mapping undersea cables – was operating on the edge of UK waters north of Scotland. In a clear message to Putin, the Defence Secretary said: “We see you. We know what you are doing. And we are ready.”

As Yantar lingered in UK’s wider waters, its crew directed lasers at the RAF P-8 pilots tracking it in a reckless and dangerous act. While tracking Yantar, Royal Navy frigate HMS Somerset and other civilian ships in the area experienced GPS jamming in a further demonstration of unprofessional behaviour, intended to be disruptive and a nuisance. HMS Somerset’s combat capabilities were not affected.

The UK has a wide range of military options at its disposal to keep UK waters safe. Three RAF P-8 Poseidon aircraft have deployed to Keflavik Air Base in Iceland in the largest overseas deployment of the RAF P-8 fleet so far.

The P-8s from 120 Squadron are conducting surveillance operations as part of NATO’s collective defence, patrolling for Russian ships and submarines in the North Atlantic and Arctic.

While in Iceland, RAF crews are working closely with NATO allies, including the US and Canada, reinforcing the UK’s NATO-first approach and commitment to Euro-Atlantic security in this new era of threat.

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