A Russian frigate fired a warning shot at a British-flagged yacht in the English Channel after a close-range encounter, the UK Coastguard said. The vessel, Admiral Grigorovich, part of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, has been operating near UK waters for weeks and was previously observed escorting shadow-fleet tankers and loitering near an offshore wind farm off Suffolk. Two Royal Navy River-class patrol vessels had been tracking the frigate in the Channel prior to the incident. The episode follows Pr

A Russian frigate fired a warning shot at a British-flagged yacht in the English Channel after a close-range encounter, the UK Coastguard said. The vessel, Admiral Grigorovich, part of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, has been operating near UK waters for weeks and was previously observed escorting shadow-fleet tankers and loitering near an offshore wind farm off Suffolk. Two Royal Navy River-class patrol vessels had been tracking the frigate in the Channel prior to the incident. The episode follows Prime Minister Starmer's order to deploy Royal Marines to board the shadow-fleet tanker Smyrtos on Sunday; the tanker is detained off England's south coast and some crew are under investigation for alleged sanctions breaches.