A Russian Navy vessel traveling through the English Channel fired shots Tuesday near a yacht registered in the United Kingdom, causing no damage but raising concerns amid ongoing tension between Britain and Russia over marine transit in the region, according to British military officials.
Late Tuesday, officials from Britain’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement that the Russian ship, called the Admiral Grigorovich, appeared to be trying to avoid a collision with the British ship.
Officials said the Russian ship had tried unsuccessfully to communicate to the yacht and fired the shots because the Russian vessel was drifting, not operating under power, a common maneuver which could have made it difficult to avoid a potential crash if the yacht came too close.
Officials said the shots fired from the Russian ship were not aimed at the yacht and were single rounds, not fired from an automatic weapon.
Earlier in the day, officials said that the yacht reported that the Russian ship was about 500 yards away when the warning shots were fired. Both ships were about 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight but outside of British territorial waters, officials said.
No damage or injuries were reported by the people on the yacht, which continued on its path after reporting the incident, officials said.
The British Navy had been aware of the presence of the Grigorovich in the Channel, saying over the weekend that the H.M.S. Mersey and H.M.S. Tyne, British patrol vessels, had been carrying out a routine operation to shadow the Russian naval frigate.
On Tuesday, British officials said the Mersey was monitoring the Russian ship at the time of the episode with the yacht. They added that a boat from the Tyne had visited the yacht to make sure its passengers were safe.
A statement from the British Ministry of Defense said Tuesday’s episode was under investigation.
It comes two days after the British military intercepted and seized control of the Smyrtos, a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker sailing in the English Channel. The British Defense Ministry said over the weekend that boarding the Smyrtos was an effort to disrupt Russia’s shadow fleet, ships that covertly move fuel around the globe on Russia’s behalf, enabling it to sidestep international sanctions that were imposed after its invasion of Ukraine.
The statement on Tuesday from Britain’s Defense Ministry said that officials were treating Tuesday’s action by the Russian naval vessel and the British yacht as an “isolated incident” unrelated to the Smyrtos interception.
The Russian Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Alina Lobzina contributed reporting.
