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Headline: Royal Navy intercepts two Russian ships in English Channel
Short Summary: The Royal Navy, via HMS Severn, intercepted two Russian vessels—the RFN Stoikiy corvette and the Yelnya tanker—in the English Channel near the Dover Strait in late November 2025. The UK Ministry of Defence reported a 30% increase in Russian naval presence threatening British waters over the past two years. HMS Severn tracked the Russian ships and later transferred monitoring to a NATO ally while staying ready for unexpected activity. Separately, the Russian spy ship Yantar was seen off Scotland using lasers to disrupt RAF pilots tracking it, prompting increased Royal Navy engagement rules. Defence Secretary John Healey condemned the Russian moves as dangerous and evidence of broader aggression affecting Europe beyond the Ukraine conflict. The navigation complied with international law permitting passage but must avoid threatening sovereignty. This incident underscores persistent Russian naval provocations near UK territorial waters.
Extended Summary: The Royal Navy, via HMS Severn, intercepted two Russian vessels—the RFN Stoikiy corvette and the Yelnya tanker—in the English Channel near the Dover Strait in late November 2025. The UK Ministry of Defence reported a 30% increase in Russian naval presence threatening British waters over the past two years. HMS Severn tracked the Russian ships and later transferred monitoring to a NATO ally while staying ready for unexpected activity. Separately, the Russian spy ship Yantar was seen off Scotland using lasers to disrupt RAF pilots tracking it, prompting increased Royal Navy engagement rules. Defence Secretary John Healey condemned the Russian moves as dangerous and evidence of broader aggression affecting Europe beyond the Ukraine conflict. The navigation complied with international law permitting passage but must avoid threatening sovereignty. This incident underscores persistent Russian naval provocations near UK territorial waters.
In late November 2025, the Royal Navy intercepted two Russian vessels, the corvette RFN Stoikiy and the tanker Yelnya, sailing west through the Dover Strait into the English Channel. HMS Severn tracked and shadowed these ships, later handing over monitoring duties to a NATO ally off the coast of Brittany, France, while continuing long-distance observation. The incident is part of a marked 30% rise in Russian vessel activity near UK waters over two years. The Royal Navy has adapted its engagement rules to more closely monitor Russian spy ships like Yantar, which recently targeted RAF pilots with lasers while being tracked off Scotland. Defence Secretary John Healey condemned these activities as aggressive actions impacting European security beyond Ukraine, emphasizing the legal constraints on foreign naval passage through the Dover Strait under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. This event reflects ongoing heightened Russian naval presence near British territorial waters.
The article explicitly describes Russian naval vessels entering UK territorial waters and engaging in threatening behavior, constituting aggressor activity. Simultaneously, UK Royal Navy forces intercepted and shadowed these ships, adapting engagement rules to counter such threats, reflecting defense preparations.
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