Lately tension among the G7 nations and Russia has been felt, even before the conference in Cornwall of G7 leaders.
Russian vs Britain?
Reports by Russia state that it fired on the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Defender while in the Black Sea. However, the British Ministry of Defense (BMD) said no event occurred, reported the Mirror UK.
One account by Russian sources said that the HMS Defender strayed into their sovereignty and a jet was deployed to drop warning bombs in its path, with no intention to hit the warship. However, a statement from the BMD said that no warning shots were directed at the HMS Defender, cited the BBC.
One more statement added the Royal Navy ship was passing through Ukrainian territorial waters in following international law. Before entering the waters, it was mentioned that the passing of the UK warship was notified. This was to alert the Russian forces who were doing gunnery drills in the Black Sea. A spokesman from the Royal Navy said that the allegation of bombs dropped was denied, noted Bloomberg.
According to the Russians, the UK warship was soon on its way out of the contested waters. It was remarked that the foreign ship was inside three kilometers from the supposed borderline waters.
The argument is likely to focus on Crimea's territorial waters, which Russia acquired from Ukraine in 2014, resulting in Russia's removal from the G8. The presence of the British warship is an issue with the Russian military.
The Actual Report
A statement from Moscow said that at exactly 11:52 am, on 23 June, the HMS Defender of the British Royal Navy was sailing in the northwestern part of the Black Sea. Its path had violated the border and got within three kilometers of Russian territory close to the region of Cape Fiolent, noted the Guardian.
At 2:06 and 12:08, Russia fired shots to warn the British ship. After firing the shots, at 12:19 a plane did a bombing run with high explosive fragmentation ordnance in the path of the ship. All the actions of the Black Sea Fleet and the FSB Border forces were intended to eject the HMS Defender. It eventually turned to leave the contested waters of Ukraine, which have been annexed as part of the Russian Federation.
The destroyer was doing operations in the Black Sea with the USS Laboon and the Dutch cruiser HNLMS Evertsen to show support for Ukraine after Putin's previous large military buildup close Ukraine's borders.
Moscow has publicly confirmed that it is keeping a close eye on the HMS Defender, which can lead to 56 Tomahawk cruise missiles at any given time. One picture takes by the Royal Navy Destroyer had a Russian frigate Admiral Essen trailing USS Laboon.
Former commander Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, who commanded the Black Sea Fleet made it clear these ships are not welcome. He added they won't be guests of honor and will be under watch.
All ships, including the British warship, will be monitored from space and the air because they have been visiting the Black Sea too often. The Russian military commander said there is compliance with Montreux Convention.
