A Russian warship conducted firing exercises off the coast of Plymouth

A Russian warship under the shadow of a Royal Navy ship conducted a live-fire exercise 40 nautical miles south of Plymouth on Monday.

The Royal Navy is in control of the exercise and continues to “closely monitor the ship’s movements”, a Ministry of Defense spokesman said.

The Russian warship Neustrashimi was also monitored by a French military aircraft, and the warship made radio contact with the warship to explain its purpose, BBC reported.

The BBC was also told that before opening fire, the Russian warship had informed the Royal Navy Coast Guard ship HMS Tyne that it intended to engage in gunfire.

He asked the Russian warship HMS Tay to turn to a safe distance, which he did. The Russian live fire exercise took place in international waters and lasted for 30 minutes.

The incident will serve as a reminder to the new prime minister of increased Russian naval activity near UK waters in recent months. UK defense sources declined to comment on whether the incident may have been timed to coincide with the start of Andy Burnham’s tenure as premier.

Last month, the Royal Marine Commandos She was boarded by a Russian “shadow ship” oil tanker in the English Channel. The six-hour operation was the first of its kind by the UK Armed Forces.

Also in June, a British couple in international waters in the English Channel encountered a Russian warship, the Admiral Grigorovich – 23 miles (37 km) from the Isle of Wight.

The frigate Jane and Alan Kelvey fired warning shots as they sailed their ship In what the Russian Defense Ministry said was a “dangerous approach”. However, the couple “were not on a collision course,” he said.

Russian warships routinely pass through international waters in the channel that separates them from the UK and French coasts.

Additional report by Ella Kipling