UK warns Putin after detecting a Russian ship in its waters
The British defense minister reported that this is the second time this year that they have spotted the military ship Yantar sailing close to their shores.
The UK defense minister shows an image of the Russian ship Yantar sailing in British waters.
(AFP) The UK Defense Minister, John Healey, issued a warning Wednesday to Russian President, Vladimir Putin, following the detection of the Yantar military vessel in British waters for the second time this year.
"My message to Russia and to Putin is that we see them. We know what they are doing. And if the Yantar heads south this week, we are ready," the minister said during a press conference.
The minister specified that the vessel was spotted near the north of Scotland and that, for the first time, it had aimed its lasers at Royal Air Force aircraft pilots who were monitoring its activities.
"This is the second time this year it has entered British waters," Healey stressed.
"It is part of a Russian fleet designed to endanger and compromise our undersea infrastructures and those of our allies," the minister continued.
According to Healey, it is "a Russian program aimed at developing capabilities to secure surveillance in peacetime and sabotage in times of conflict," he added.
On January 22, the minister had already issued a warning to Putin following the detection by the Royal Navy of the same vessel, described as a "Russian spy", in the English Channel and then in the North Sea.
LATEST
