One of Russia's submarines was found lurking off the coast of Ireland. By: Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation
British military sources have reported that its navy intercepted a Russian submarine off the coast of Ireland.
Knewz.com has learned that the incident, which took place six months ago but only just came to light, occurred near Cork Harbour and is believed to be part of a spy mission conducted by Vladimir Putin's regime.
One of Russia's submarines was found lurking off the coast of Ireland. By: Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation
The Russian submarine was reportedly stationed outside the entrance to Cork Harbour and accompanied by a Russian-registered “civilian” vessel that is said to have provided surface surveillance.
The British were able to establish this after they deployed a helicopter under the cover of darkness and dropped sonar equipment into the water to track the submarine’s movements.
Sometime later, a Royal Navy anti-submarine frigate arrived on the scene to monitor the situation and subsequently “chased off” the snooper, per the Irish Examiner.
Notably, Russia's actions during this incident did not violate any international laws, as the submarine was lurking just outside the 12-mile coastal limit.
The snooping submarine was chased off first by a British military helicopter, then a warship. By: Facebook/Royal Navy
This event is one among various reported provocative gestures by Russian forces along the Irish coast, which may be because the Irish naval fleet does not possess sonar detection capabilities - making it ineffective in detecting submarines.
In May 2023, The Irish Times reported that a Russian Navy ship Admiral Grigorovich had become a regular fixture in Irish waters.
The UK Defence Journal reported that Britain participated in the observation exercise. “In response to these naval activities, both the British Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force have been providing support by tracking Russian navy ships operating in international waters near Irish and British territories.”
Russia’s presence in the area cultivated concern among experts that the occupants of these Russian vessels were either mapping or tampering with undersea cables, per The Irish Times.
The UK and Ireland are not the only European countries to have questioned Russian activity off their shores.
The actual severing of undersea cables occurred off the coast of Norway in April 2021 and again in January 2022.
“This could have happened by accident,” Norway's Minister of Defence Eirik Kristoffersen noted, but went on to say, “But the Russians are capable of cutting cables.”
A vessel from the Royal Navy was dispatched to deal with the hidden Russian threat. Facebook/Marine Technology
In August 2023 Reuters noted that Russia tested Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s determination to stay in Russia’s good books.
This observation followed a brazen raid wherein Putin’s armed naval officers swooped on a Turkish-based vessel 37 miles off Turkey’s coast.
The vulnerability of the UK and the rest of Europe's critical defense infrastructure has come amid growing concerns of potential conflict between Russia and NATO.
Russia is yet to comment on the latest report.
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