NATO warships escorted a Russian Navy submarine through the North Sea and the English Channel as it transited in the direction of its Novorossiysk base in the Black Sea.
The Royal Navy sent its Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset to shadow the Russian Kilo-class submarine Krasnodar as it passed through the English Channel.
The Plymouth-based ship located the submarine in the early hours of Friday morning as it sailed past the eastern coast of the UK and followed her through the Dover Strait and the rest of the English Channel over the weekend.
Krasnodar was also escorted by NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 1 whose units took pictures of the submarine from an NH-90 helicopter.
Passage door Noordzee van Russische Kilo-klasse onderzeeboot KRASNODAR. Begeleiding oa door eenheden van SNMG1. Foto vanuit NLD NH-90. pic.twitter.com/mnqutXhfxP
— Rob Verkerk (@GeneraalVerkerk) May 5, 2017
Commander Tim Berry, the commanding officer of HMS Somerset, said: “Policing the sea both in home waters and further afield is core business for the Royal Navy.
“Escorting foreign warships, in this case a Russian submarine, through UK waters is just part of our ongoing effort to protect our island nation.”
Last month, Somerset’s sister ship HMS Sutherland was called on to escort two Russian warships as they sailed close to UK territorial waters.