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The vessel known as Yantar is officially described by Russia as an oceanic research ship, yet the UK regards it as a spy vessel of significant concern to its defence authorities. For some time, the Yantar has been suspected of covertly surveying Britain’s underwater cables, a critical infrastructure through which more than 90% of the nation’s data flows, including vast sums in financial transactions. Recently, tensions have escalated following reports that crew members aboard the Yantar directed lasers at Royal Air Force pilots during patrol missions.
Such use of lasers against pilots is considered highly provocative and dangerous. UK Defence Secretary John Healey characterized it as “deeply dangerous” and illegal under British law, punishable by imprisonment. Healey issued a direct warning to Russia and its leadership, asserting: “We see you. We know what you’re doing. And if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.” This statement implies that should the Yantar infringe on the UK’s 12-mile maritime territorial boundary, a military response could ensue.
This incursion is not an isolated incident; earlier this year, a Royal Navy submarine surfaced unexpectedly in front of the Yantar as a deterrent. The broader concern is that Russia is engaged in a deliberate operation aimed at identifying and mapping the vital undersea cables and pipelines that connect the UK with the rest of the globe. This activity fits into a larger pattern of Russian probing actions designed to test NATO’s defenses and resolve, paralleling other recent incidents like drone crossings into European airspace and unauthorized flights by Russian warplanes into NATO territories. NATO countries scrambled fighter jets in response to unauthorized Russian jets entering Estonian airspace last September, an intelligence-gathering exercise for Russia itself.
As an island nation, the UK’s reliance on underwater cables and pipelines is critical, not only for data transmission but also for energy supply routes from North Sea neighbors such as Norway. These cables and pipelines are largely undefended and appear to be of heightened interest to Russian research vessels like the Yantar. NATO has recognized these deep-sea cables as part of global critical infrastructure vulnerability, warning that adversaries could exploit them through sabotage or hybrid warfare, potentially compromising both civilian and military communications. Retired Royal Navy Commander Tom Sharpe explained the stakes: “The most obvious one is they sit above our cables and our critical undersea infrastructure and they nose around in the cables that transfer up to $7tn worth of financial transactions every day between us and America alone.”
Though Moscow presents the Yantar as a research vessel, it operates under the auspices of Russia’s Main Directorate for Deep Sea Research (GUGI), which reports directly to the Russian Defence Ministry. The vessel is equipped with advanced communication systems, but the greater concern lies with its capacity to deploy remotely operated mini-submarines capable of descending thousands of meters below the ocean surface. These submersibles can map undersea cables, potentially sever them, or even attach sabotage devices that could be triggered during conflict.
In response to this threat, the Royal Navy is exploring countermeasures, including the development of new vessels like Proteus designed to counter sub-sea threats. However, some critics worry that substantial harm to Britain’s coastal security may have already occurred. While foreign vessels do have the right to pass through UK waters under international maritime law, specifically the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), such passage must be “innocent” and cannot pose a threat to national security or peace.
In the midst of these developments, Russian President Vladimir Putin attended an AI conference in Moscow without commenting on the situation in the waters north of Scotland. Russia’s Embassy in London has denied undermining UK security and condemned Defence Secretary Healey’s remarks as provocative. These tensions persist against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Ukraine, a conflict that President Putin blames on Western nations and appears intent on continuing
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