"We are watching": Nato warships scrambled after Russian submarine Novorossiysk spotted loitering near France
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Allied naval assets scrambled of the coast of France after a Russian submarine was spotted loitering there.
A French Navy frigate was deployed yesterday (October 9) to monitor the Moscow vessel RFN Novorossiysk (B-261). The Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric attack submarine is assigned to Vladimir Putin’s Black Sea fleet and was seen off the coast of Brittainy, northern France.
Nato Maritime Command issued a social media statement and said allied forces will keep a constant eye out for any movements. “We are watching,” they said.
“A French Navy frigate conducts surveillance of the Alliance’s maritime approaches, marking the presence of a Russian submarine operating on the surface off the coast of Brittany. NATO stands ready to defend our Alliance with constant vigilance and maritime awareness across the Atlantic.”
The Belgian Navy patrol vessel BNS Castor was also deployed as RFN Novorossiysk passed through the North Sea. Nato organises continuous patrols across the North Atlantic, with allied ships maintaining watch over surface and subsurface movements near European waters.
RFN Novorossiysk is 74 metres long and has a displacement of 3,100 tonnes. It can remain at sea for 45 days, powered by diesel generators and an electric motor. It has previously been deployed as part of Russia’s intervention in the Syria civil war, with Moscow previously supporting the regime of Bashar al-Assad. After losing their Syrian base. Moscow has tried to maintain a presence in Europe.
The submarine has been spotted several times in the English Channel, with Royal Navy warships responding accordingly. HMS Mersey, a Wildcat helicopter from 815 Naval Air Squadron, and a Merlin Mk2 aircraft from 824 Naval Air Squadron, tracked RFS Novorossiysk while she was sailing with the Goryn-class tug boat Yakov Grebelskiy in July.
RFA Tidesurge and a submarine-hunting Merlin helicopter also monitored the submarine while it sailed alongside RFS Boiky. The UK is taking the lead in Operation Nordic Warden, a mission alongside Nato and Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) allies which monitors the Russian shadow fleet.