The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is investigating after a Russian warship fired warning shots at a British yacht that came near it in the English Channel.
The Admiral Grigorovich, a Russian frigate, fired warning shots after making attempts to contact the yacht, the MoD claimed, in order to prevent a potential collision. Russia’s defence ministry has claimed its sailors were acting “in strict accordance” with international shipping regulations.
While this is being viewed as an isolated incident, it came days after tensions between the UK and Russia spiked when Britain seized a sanctioned vessel transiting through the Channel.
The operation, which saw commandos fast-roping from a helicopter onto the tanker, was the first of its kind carried out by UK armed forces.
In recent months, France, Belgium and Sweden have all seized vessels part of Russia’s shadow fleet in a crackdown on the sanctioned ships.
The incident with the Admiral Grigorovich is the latest in a series of altercations between the UK and Russia at sea. Concerns have been raised not just about the daily presence of sanctioned vessels transiting British waters, but the risk of Russian interference with vital undersea cables and energy infrastructure.
Here is a timeline of the incidents between the UK and Russia at sea since the war in Ukraine began.
16 June – Admiral Grigorovich shoots warning signals at yacht
The Admiral Grigorovich shot warning signals at a retired couple on a yacht about 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight, outside the UK’s territorial waters. There were no injuries and the yacht was not damaged in the incident, but the couple on board – Jane and Alan Kelvey – said the incident was “a bit scary”.
A translation of a statement posted on the Telegram channel for the Russian defence ministry said the yacht had been on a “dangerous approach” and the warning shots were fired after attempting to draw the attention of the yacht’s crew through signal flares and sound signals.
It said the Russian sailors had acted “in strict accordance” with international shipping regulations.
The Kelveys have insisted they were not on a collision course, and that the Russian warship did not appear on the automatic identification system used to track maritime vessels. They said they received no radio, instead hearing blasts of a horn and gunfire.
14 June – Smyrtos seized
Royal Marines intercepted a Russian shadow fleet vessel sailing through the Channel in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Commandos and specially trained law enforcement officers from the National Crime Agency boarded the Smyrtos during a six-hour operation – the first UK-led operation of its kind – supported by aircraft from the Maritime Air Group (Chinooks, Merlin Mk4 and Wildcat), an RAF P-8 aircraft, and HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury.
The vessel is currently off the coast of Weymouth, Dorset. Indian national Ajay Pant, 38, was charged with directly or indirectly supplying or delivering by ship prohibited oil or oil products from Russia to a third country in June 2026, in contravention of Regulation 46Z9B of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
1 June – UK help France to seize Russian shadow vessel
The UK supported the French Navy in intercepting the Tagor, a new tanker under international sanctions, president Emmanuel Macron said.
He said: “This operation was carried out in the Atlantic, in international waters, with the support of several partners including the United Kingdom, in strict compliance with the law of the sea.
“It is unacceptable for ships to circumvent international sanctions, violate the law of the sea, and fund the war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for more than 4 years. These vessels, which fail to adhere to the most basic rules of maritime navigation, also pose a threat to the environment and to everyone’s safety.”
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “We can confirm that a helicopter from onboard HMS Somerset provided tracking and monitoring in support of the French operation to board the tanker Tagor.
“Alongside our allies, we are stepping up our response to shadow vessels – to choke off the funds that fuel Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.”
6 May – Royal Navy monitors Admiral Grigorovich in month-long operation
The Admiral Grigorovich was continuously monitored in UK waters for an entire month by the Royal Navy, the force announced.
The frigate was watched by patrol ships HMS Tyne, HMS Mersey and HMS Severn as it sailed for the whole of April to the west of the UK and in the North Sea including close to the Galloper wind farm off the Suffolk coast.
A Royal Navy spokesman said: “The Grigorovich moved between the North Sea and Western Approaches, escorting Russian-flagged vessels heading to and from the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Baltic.
“She accompanied one submarine and around six merchant and support vessels during the month.
“The frigate also paused to take on fuel and supplies near key national infrastructure, including the Galloper wind farm off the Suffolk coast.”
9 April – Ministry of Defence submarine operation revealed
The UK and allies tracked a Russian attack submarine and two spy submarines loitering over critical undersea cables in the North Atlantic for a month before they retreated, John Healey announced.
The Krasnodar accompanied two Gugi submarines around UK waters before eventually retreating. The former defence secretary said that a Royal Navy warship and Royal Air Force P-8 aircraft were deployed to deter “malign” activity by Moscow in waters off the UK’s northern coast.
The month-long operation involved 500 British personnel with RAF crews flying more than 50 sorties using P-8 Poseidon submarine-hunting aircraft, with support from allied countries including Norway.
Minister Luke Pollard insisted that “by declaring the Russian activity, putting it in the public domain, we’re denying their deniability, as the military phrase goes for it.”
He added that a Russian warship escorting so-called shadow fleet tankers “shows how vulnerable they now are” after UK threats to seize sanctioned vessels.
November 2025 – The Yantar
The Yantar spy ship was caught lurking over cables in waters north of Scotland and was warned off by a Royal Navy nuclear-powered attack submarine.
The MoD declassified a photo in December, which saw a British submarine and an anti-submarine Merlin Mk2 helicopter tracking the Yantar as it crossed the Irish Sea, where it was reportedly surveying the gas pipeline between Britain and Ireland.
Defence sources said the Yantar had not returned to UK waters since that incident.
