UK accuses Russian spy ship of pointing lasers at pilots watching vessel

After a Russian spy ship that spent weeks moored its lasers at British pilots sent to monitor the vessel, the United Kingdom has warned it is prepared to use “military options” if necessary.

British Defence Secretary John Healey criticized the Yantar’s actions against royal air force (RAF) pilots as being “deeply dangerous” and said Britain is ready to react based on the ship’s next move in a speech delivered in London on Wednesday.

A UK naval frigate and RAF P-8 planes were on hand to monitor the ship as it traveled north of Scotland, according to the defense secretary. They are meant to track down undersea cables for intelligence gathering and mapping.

We see you, that is my message to Russia and [President Vladimir Putin. You are doing what you are doing, we are aware of. We are prepared, Healey said, if the Yantar travels south this week.

Yantar has engaged in this action for the first time against the British RAF. We take it seriously, he continued.

Headley continued that he had modified the navy’s engagement rules to enable it to “monitor more closely” the vessel’s activities.  

Should the Yantar change their course, he said, “We have military options ready.”

Near its territorial waters and airspace, regularly shadow potential threats, Britain’s air and naval forces. Since Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian submarines and ships have been traveling more frequently.

The Russian embassy in London claimed in a statement that Healey had “whipped up militaristic hysteria” and that the British government was “Russophobic” in response.

Moscow responded to what it termed “endless accusations” by saying that its actions “do not affect the interests of the United Kingdom and are not intended to undermine its security.”

It stated, “We are not interested in British underwater communications,” urging the country to “refuse to take destructive actions that only make the European continent’s crisis worse.”

British officials reported that the Yantar, which is meant to sabotage during wartime and conduct surveillance during peacetime, conducted an investigation into the UK’s defenses in January as it traversed the English Channel.

Before heading for the Mediterranean, Healey claimed the spy vessel was “loitering over UK critical undersea infrastructure.”

As a new form of underwater hybrid warfare, ships connected to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet of sanctions-evading oil tankers have been accused of carrying out attacks on pipelines and cables.

A Russian-linked ship was seized in Finland in December on suspicion of intentionally harming an undersea power cable between Finland and Estonia in the Baltic Sea.

Prior to the release of Britain’s new budget on November 26, Headley issued a warning about increased defense spending in response to threats from Russia, China, and Iran.

Britain pledged to increase defense spending by 5% of its gross domestic product by 2035, more than double the amount from the previous year, in June. 3 percent, which is in line with the majority of NATO members.

Healey claimed that as part of a 1 project, the UK plans to create “13 potential sites” for the manufacture of munitions and explosives. 5-billion-pound (about $1. a $95. billion) investment strategy to create more than 1,000 jobs.