Russia claims to have fired warning shots at UK warship

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 23 Jun 2021 by Alex Teddy

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On June 23 Moscow said one of its warships and jets in the Black Sea fired to scare off the Royal Naval vessel because it was threatening the entrance to a naval base. The plane supposedly dropped four bombs on the path of the ship after a Russian warship had fired warning shots near HMS Defender. A Dutch frigate was nearby.The British vessel sailed away some time later. Moscow said this showed that its deterrence worked. The incident took place not far from Sevastopol.Moscow summoned the British military attache to discuss the incident. The UK said there was no incident and no warning shots were fired. London said it assumed that the Russians were firing and dropping bombs as part of a training exercise. The British insisted that their ship was sailing in Ukrainian waters. Moscow asserts that the sea off Crimea is Russian.Moscow said that the British warship was guilty of ''a flagrant violation of international norms.''The US Navy says that the data showing the British warship sailing towards the Russian Black Sea HQ was faked. If a NATO warship had positioned itself just off a Russian naval base, this would have been seen as threatening.If Russia really fired warning shots this would be a very significant escalation. This has not happened for decades. There is always a chance that a warning shot will not miss as it is supposed to. It could accidentally hit the vessel and kill sailors.Russia has a very proactive approach to naval and aviation intercepts. Nonetheless it is hard to believe that Russia would raise the stakes now, just as they appear to have improved relations with the US. However, the ship in this incident was British, and not a US warship. It could be t...