Active with submarine cables: Navy escorts Russian ship out of Irish Sea
After a Russian reconnaissance vessel was active off Ireland with submarine cables, it was escorted by the navy. Contact attempts remained unanswered.
The Yantar in 2018
(Image: Andrey Luzik, Mil.ru, CC BY 4.0)
The Irish navy escorted a Russian exploration vessel out of the waters between Ireland and the UK over the weekend after the "Yantar" was active in the vicinity of undersea cables and pipelines. This was reported by The Irish Examiner, which reported concerns in the military about the Russian "audacity". The ship had initially arrived together with the frigate Admiral Golovko, but then moved away from it. The Yantar then moved north alone into the Irish Sea. There it then moved close to the gas pipelines, undersea power cables and transatlantic submarine internet cables. Attempts to make contact were not answered.
More likely a warning
According to the daily newspaper, the armed forces in the region were prepared for the ship to enter Irish and British waters. The British, Irish and US militaries monitored the ship extensively, and Norway had previously observed its activities. The Yantar then deployed three drones in the Irish Sea, reports the Irish Times. It is not clear exactly what they were used for, but it is assumed that they were used to scout the critical infrastructure. According to this report, another group of three Russian ships was also deployed in the Irish Sea and the English Channel at around the same time.
According to the British industry magazine Navy Lookout, it is considered unlikely that Russia would directly cause damage to critical infrastructure on the seabed in the affected area. The Irish Sea is simply too well monitored for that. Instead, it is more likely to send a signal and collect data. Should Russia actually decide to manipulate submarine cables directly, for example, this would probably happen in more remote locations where it would be easier to deny responsibility. Almost three years ago, an important submarine cable to Spitsbergen failed, with evidence pointing to Russia in this case.
The Yantar is now no stranger to Western military forces; the exploration vessel was already operating along the Irish coast in 2021 and was suspected of spying on the Atlantic cables laid there due to its equipment with deep-sea-capable submersibles. The Irish Examiner now quotes expert Edward Burke from University College Dublin, who describes the latest incident as a new wake-up call. Ireland must strengthen its maritime forces and expand partnerships with Europe. The US think tank CSIS (Center for Stratetig International Studies) warned just a few weeks ago that Yantar clearly intends to exploit infrastructure vulnerabilities in a conflict scenario.
(mho)