A Royal Navy frigate escorted a Russian
warship on Christmas Day as it passed close to
British territorial waters, the ministry of
defence said Tuesday at a time of strained
relations between London and Moscow.

A Royal Navy frigate escorted a Russian
warship on Christmas Day as it passed
close to British territorial waters, the
ministry of defence said Tuesday at a time
of strained relations between London and
Moscow.
The HMS St Albans monitored the Russian
frigate Admiral Gorshkov in the North Sea,
"keeping track of its activity in areas of national
interest," it said in a statement.
The St Albans, a Type 23 frigate, was deployed
on Saturday to track the Russian vessel and
would return to its Portsmouth base Tuesday.
"I will not hesitate in defending our waters or
tolerate any form of aggression," defence
minister Gavin Williamson said in a statement
after the incident.
"Britain will never be intimidated when it comes
to protecting our country, our people, and our
national interests."
The defence ministry said there had been a
recent "upsurge in Russian units transiting UK
waters".
It said the patrol ship HMS Tyne also escorted
"a Russian intelligence-gathering ship" through
the North Sea and the Channel on Sunday.
A navy helicopter was sent to monitor two other
Russian vessels.
HMS St Albans was also involved in escorting a
Russian aircraft carrier and missile cruiser
through the Channel in January this year.
Relations between London and Moscow have
been hostile for years, with allegations of
Russian meddling in Britain's referendum on
leaving the European Union and Moscow's
intervention in Syria on the side of the
Damascus regime further straining already tense
ties.
British foreign minister Boris Johnson clashed
with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in
Moscow last week even as they sought to mend
relations.
Source: http://zedchat.wapgem.com