Russia accuses British government of being 'provocative' after spy ship nears UK

Russia has accused the British government of "provocative statements" and an "escalation of militaristic hysteria" after the defence secretary warned a Kremlin spy ship was nearing the UK.

At a news conference in Downing Street on Wednesday, John Healey said the Yantar was on the edge of British waters north of Scotland, having entered wider UK waters over the last few weeks.

He said it was the second time this year the ship had been deployed off the UK coast and he claimed it was "designed for gathering intelligence and mapping our undersea cables".

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Mr Healey said the ship had "directed lasers" at pilots of surveillance aircraft monitoring its activities - a Russian action he called "deeply dangerous".

The defence secretary explained: "We deployed a Royal Navy frigate and RAF planes to monitor and track this vessel's every move, during which the Yantar directed lasers at our pilots."

He said his message to Moscow and President Vladimir Putin was "we see you, we know what you're doing, and if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready".

Mr Healey also stated the UK government has "military options ready" if the ship sails closer to British shores.

Russia's response

Responding to Mr Healey's comments, the Russian embassy to the UK said on social media it noted his "latest provocative statements" and insisted the ship was an "oceanographic research vessel... in international waters".

The embassy said the British accusations "raise a smile" and Russia's actions were "not aimed at undermining" the UK's security.

It hit out at the UK government's "Russophobic course and the escalation of militaristic hysteria", which it warned creates "prerequisites for new dangerous situations", as it urged London to "refrain from destructive steps".

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The defence secretary's remarks come after a report from MPs warned the UK lacks a plan to defend itself from a military attack, despite the government promising to boost readiness with new arms factories.

At least 13 sites across the UK have been identified for new factories to make munitions and military explosives, with Mr Healey expecting the arms industry to break ground at the first plant next year.

The report, by the Commons Defence Committee, said the UK "lacks a plan for defending the homeland and overseas territories" as it urged the government to launch a "co-ordinated effort to communicate with the public on the level of threat we face".

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'Assertive retaliation'

Now the government has been cautioned it may need to be "more muscular" in standing up to Russia.

The chair of the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy, Matt Western, said Wednesday's development "demonstrates once again that Russia presents a genuine and immediate threat to the UK's security".

He added that "the UK needed to be more muscular in tackling Russian aggression" and "there is more we can do".

"More assertive retaliation may be required," he concluded.

Mr Healey acknowledged the dangers facing the UK, saying the country was in a "new era of threat" that "demands a new era for defence".

Giving more details on the vessel, he said it was "part of a Russian fleet designed to put and hold our undersea infrastructure and those of our allies at risk".

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He said the Yantar wasn't just part of a naval operation but part of a Russian programme driven by Moscow's Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research, or GUGI, which is "designed to have capabilities which can undertake surveillance in peacetime and sabotage in conflict".

"That is why we've been determined, whenever the Yantar comes into British wider waters, we track it, we deter it and we say to Putin we are ready, and we do that alongside allies," he added.

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Asked by Sky News' political correspondent Rob Powell whether this was the first time that lasers had been used by a Russian vessel against pilots, Mr Healey replied: "This is the first time we've had this action from Yantar directed against the British RAF.

"We take it extremely seriously. I've changed the Navy's rules of engagement so that we can follow more closely, monitor more closely, the activities of the Yantar when it's in our wider waters. We have military options ready."

Mr Healey added that the last time the Yantar was in UK waters, the British military surfaced a nuclear-powered attack submarine close to the ship "that they did not know was there".