{"id":204587,"date":"2020-03-27T06:47:45","date_gmt":"2020-03-27T06:47:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=204587"},"modified":"2021-05-23T08:14:58","modified_gmt":"2021-05-23T08:14:58","slug":"reports-of-unusually-high-russian-naval-activity-in-the-english-channel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=204587","title":{"rendered":"Reports of \u201cUnusually High\u201d Russian Naval Activity in the English Channel"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Royal Navy sends NINE ships to shadow seven-strong Russian warship fleet active in English Channel and North Sea amid fears Putin is trying to take advantage of coronavirus crisis<\/h3>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\">Raven Saunt, James Tapsfield \u2013 Mail Online March 26, 2020<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong>Royal Navy has deployed to counter &#8216;unusually high&#8217; levels of activity by Russian ships in British waters<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong>Russian warships were monitored for a week using state-of-the-art radar, surveillance cameras and sensors<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong>The operation by nine Navy vessels was supported by Merlin and Wildcat helicopters as well as NATO allies<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong>In a message to Moscow the Navy insisted it will not lose focus on security amid the coronavirus crisis in UK<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong>There have been fears Russia is behind a wave of disinformation about coronavirus designed to panic public\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ccffff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/health\/article-8118911\/Who-ask-help-coronavirus-symptoms-strike.html\">Coronavirus symptoms<\/a>: what are they and should you see a doctor?<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The Royal Navy has deployed to counter &#8216;unusually high&#8217; levels of activity by Russian ships in UK waters as the country is gripped by the coronavirus crisis, it was revealed today.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Nine vessels, along with helicopter support, were tasked with shadowing seven Russian warships in the English Channel and North Sea over a week.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The Navy said &#8216;every movement&#8217; of the vessels was monitored, amid fears Vladimir Putin could try to exploit the turmoil over the spread of the killer virus.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Concerns have also been raised that Russia is behind a wave of disinformation about the disease seemingly designed to foster panic among the public.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">In a stark message to Moscow,\u00a0Lieutenant Nick Ward, HMS Tyne&#8217;s Executive Officer said while the Navy would be helping the coronavirus response in the UK, it would not lose focus on the &#8216;essential&#8217; duty to protect national security.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_204588\" style=\"width: 550px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/HMS-Tyne.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-204588\" class=\"wp-image-204588\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/HMS-Tyne-768x534.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"376\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/HMS-Tyne-768x534.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/HMS-Tyne-300x209.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/HMS-Tyne.jpg 962w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-204588\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">HMS Tyne shadowing the Russian corvette, Steregushchiy. Click to enlarge<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_204589\" style=\"width: 550px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Nine-Royal-Navy-ships-have-intercepted-seven-Russian-naval-vessels-in-UK-waters.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-204589\" class=\"wp-image-204589\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Nine-Royal-Navy-ships-have-intercepted-seven-Russian-naval-vessels-in-UK-waters-768x754.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Nine-Royal-Navy-ships-have-intercepted-seven-Russian-naval-vessels-in-UK-waters-768x754.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Nine-Royal-Navy-ships-have-intercepted-seven-Russian-naval-vessels-in-UK-waters-300x295.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Nine-Royal-Navy-ships-have-intercepted-seven-Russian-naval-vessels-in-UK-waters.jpg 962w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-204589\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nine Royal Navy ships have intercepted seven Russian naval vessels in UK waters. Click to enlarge<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Type 23 frigates HMS Kent, HMS Sutherland, HMS Argyll and HMS Richmond joined Offshore Patrol Vessels HMS Tyne and HMS Mersey for the operation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">They were accompanied by RFA Tideforce, RFA Tidespring and HMS Echo, and there was support from NATO allies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Lieutenant Ward said: &#8216;As the Armed Forces are helping the NHS save lives in the UK, it&#8217;s essential the Navy continues to deliver the tasks we have always performed to help keep Britain safe.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">&#8216;This is very much part of routine business for HMS Tyne and represents one of the many roles our patrol vessels perform in support of the Royal Navy&#8217;s commitments.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">&#8216;This is our core business and represents an enduring commitment to uphold the security of the UK.&#8217;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The operation, believed to have finished last week, was supported by Merlin and Wildcat helicopters of 814 and 815 Naval Air Squadrons.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Royal Navy sailors and aircrew both monitored the Russian ship activity using state-of-the-art radar, surveillance cameras and sensors which allowed them to track their course and speed as they passed the British Isles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Three Steregushchiy-class corvettes, two Ropucha-class landing ships and two Admiral Grigorovich-class frigates were observed during the operations, plus their supporting auxiliary ships and tugs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">Portsmouth-based HMS Tyne spent more than a week working in the English Channel, in often challenging seas, keeping a close eye on the Russian vessels as they pass the south coast.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">HMS Sutherland, fresh from a demanding period of Arctic training on Exercise Cold Response, watched over the Russian presence as part of her duties with NATO&#8217;s Standing NATO Maritime Group One \u2013 a very high readiness task group made up of frigates and destroyers which patrols northern European waters to provide a reassuring presence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ccffff;\">The Devonport-based frigate&#8217;s Merlin helicopter carried out a number of intelligence-gathering sorties over the Russian ships as they passed through the Channel.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_137427\" style=\"width: 560px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Admiral-Grigorovich.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-137427\" class=\"wp-image-137427 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Admiral-Grigorovich.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"390\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-137427\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Seven Russian Navy vessels, including two Admiral Grigorovich class frigates like the one pictured, have passed through the English Channel recently.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-8155251\/Royal-Navy-sends-NINE-ships-shadow-seven-strong-Russian-warship-fleet-active-UK-waters.html\">Continues \u2026<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prompting the corporate media to speculate that Russia was trying to \u201cexploit\u201d the coronavirus crisis. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39262,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[58,91],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-204587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-Current_Affairs","category-russia"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39262"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=204587"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204587\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":234818,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204587\/revisions\/234818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=204587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=204587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=204587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}