Russian ‘research’ vessel in British waters highlights growing threat
The Signal | No. 02.2025
Welcome to The Signal, our new monthly roundup of maritime matters.
Thoughts from your correspondent
It is the best part of the film for a submarine nerd like me – when the adversary ship is sailing along, thinking everything is going smoothly, then a submarine surfaces nearby. We were tracking you all along, comrades. Surprise!
We found out recently that this (loosely) happened in reality back in November, when a Royal Navy submarine surfaced close to the Russian ‘research’ vessel Yantar as she loitered near the British Isles close to some critical undersea infrastructure. Yantar has also been tracked by various Royal Navy warships during her travels in Britain’s vicinity, including HMS Iron Duke, HMS Somerset, HMS Tyne and RFA Proteus.
My use of quote marks around ‘research’ is deliberate. While ostensibly a civilian vessel designed for deep-sea research and survey missions, Yantar is part of a considerable Russian fleet that is far more than it appears to be. Ever since the days of the Cold War, Moscow has used its research ships for civilian and military purposes, from intelligence gathering to surveillance to, most worryingly in the current context, sabotage. The deep-sea capabilities of the current dual-use fleet highlight the potential for deliberate damage to undersea cables and pipelines in the guise of, say, topographical seabed research. (For an excellent overview of how the ‘research’ fleet operates, read this recent explainer.)
It is not just the United Kingdom (UK) keeping an eye on these activities: the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) is ramping up its efforts, too. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has announced that Royal Air Force (RAF) P-8A Poseidon and Rivet Joint aircraft will be deployed to support a NATO-led operation called BALTIC SENTRY, boosting maritime surveillance in the Baltic Sea and preventing damage to critical undersea infrastructure. Given the recent cable damage incidents in the Baltic, which I wrote about in the last issue of ‘The Signal’, this operation could not be coming at a better time.
John Healey, Secretary of State for Defence, did not mince words in his public statement. His message to Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, was crystal clear: ‘We know what you are doing, and we will not shy away from robust action to protect Britain.’ Expect to see more Russian vessels floating suspiciously through Britain’s nearby waters – and more Royal Navy warships keeping a careful watch. We see you, comrades.
Tracking the deployments of the Royal Navy
Key movements:
HMS Spey joined the French navy’s carrier strike group in the Indo-Pacific for Exercise LA PÉROUSE, which focused on maritime choke points. Meeting in the Sunda Strait, the crew pitted their wits against a French task group, attempted to avoid aerial attacks from the airwing of the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, tackled a shipboard fire during the attack, and then participated in two gunnery shoots. This was all simulated, of course – Britain is not at war with the French again – but it is gratifying to know that the exercise directors had to stop HMS Spey from continuing to fire because she was too good at hitting the targets and had to leave some for the other ships.
The Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron beefed up their capabilities to work with divers. HMS Dagger performed a joint dive with the Moroccan navy, and HMS Cutlass carried out exercises with members of the Gibraltar Clearance Diving Element (CDE). Being provably able to use the ships as diving launch and recovery platforms extends their operational utility.
The planned Astute class submarine HMS Agincourt has been renamed to HMS Achilles, prompting a flood of speculation that this was to avoid upsetting the French. Apart from the obvious point that the UK’s friends across the Channel have probably got over being defeated in a battle in 1415 and have not seemed to mind too much about (for example) HMS Trafalgar, HMS Achilles is a storied name and will be a great addition to the fleet. BZ, however, to John W, who responded to a social media post of mine with an excellent Iliad-themed comment: ‘If you’re trying not to upset Paris, Achilles might not be the best name.’
Maritime news from allies and adversaries
United States (US): The surface-to-surface missile capability of the US Navy’s littoral combat ships has had an upgrade, with the USS Indianapolis being fitted with a new counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) and USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul to follow. The newly added 24 vertically launched AGM-114L Longbow Hellfires will be useful in the Red Sea, as will other upgrades across the class like the Mk. 70 payload delivery system and the Mk. 41 vertical launch system. We all love to rag on the littoral combat ship, but maybe SECNAV Carlos del Toro was right when he said, ‘Yes, the LCS is back.’ (Or, maybe not. We’ll see!)
South Korea: A major upgrade programme has been kicked off for the South Korean Navy’s KDX-II destroyers, following the success of the upgrades to the KDX-I class. Hanwha Systems will be updating the KDX-II’s combat systems, towed array sonar and SM-2 software integration, fixing ongoing performance issues that have plagued the class. The upgrades include a package bought from the US, including technical support, software and the MK 99 fire-control system.
India: For the first time in its history, the Indian Navy commissioned three new ships in one day: the first of its new frigates, and the final ships of its new destroyer and submarine classes.
People’s Republic of China (PRC): The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) – the PRC’s naval force – has commissioned the first of its new Type 054B frigates. The ship has been given the name Luohe, with the second in the class to be commissioned shortly. These are a new design compared to the prior Type 054A frigate – bigger, better armed, and capable of carrying larger helicopters. The PRC tends to iterate its ship designs through building them, so we are seeing the evolution of Chinese frigates playing out – and given that these two were built in around two years, we should once again be reminded of the sheer heft of Chinese shipbuilding capacity.
The PRC has also been building a series of barges with extra-long bridges that look tailor-made for amphibious landings. First spotted in Guangzhou shipyard by noted defence analyst and MS Paint master H. I. Sutton, your correspondent was privy to the gathered evidence and agrees that they look very useful for, say, invading a nearby island.
South China Sea: The US Navy has conducted a bilateral exercise with the Philippine Navy in the South China Sea. Centred around a carrier strike group headed by USS Carl Vinson, the exercise boosts interoperability while also sending a deterrence signal to the PRC – particularly important at a time when the Philippine coast guard is facing off against Chinese coast guard activity near Luzon.
Naval technology news
Rolls-Royce has signed a landmark contract with the MOD for the next eight years of designing, building and maintaining submarine nuclear reactors. As well as providing in-service support for the Royal Navy’s current fleet, the deal covers the building and commissioning of the new Dreadnought class, as well as the beginning of the forthcoming SSN-AUKUS. Piecemeal contracting is a persistent problem within defence procurement, so a longer-term commitment of this kind is welcome – securing the future of the British submarine fleet while bringing more jobs to the UK is a win-win!
AUKUS Pillar II showed some intriguing progress, with a trilateral exercise off the American coast trialling current and prototype technology to find, monitor and remove seabed threats at varying depths. The exercise included personnel from the Royal Navy’s Diving and Threat Exploitation Group and Mine and Threat Exploitation Group, using the HUGIN Superior autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to survey and the Video Ray Defender remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to identify or deal with the objects at depth.
Who deserves a mention
BZ to Lieutenant Commander Izzy Rawlinson, Petty Officer Aaby Aldridge, Lieutenant Commander Nic Hall and Lieutenant Commander Ali Aindow, collectively known as Team Valkyrie, for rowing across the Atlantic in support of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity and the Young Women’s Trust.
They have not reached their fundraising goal yet, so if you have a spare bob or two you can support them here.
War is not an affair of chance. A great deal of knowledge, study, and meditation is necessary to conduct it well, and when blows are planned whoever contrives them with the greatest appreciation of their consequences will have a great advantage.
– Frederick the Great, Instructions For His Generals, 1762
As he is one of the pre-eminent military leaders of history, one should probably listen closely to much of what Frederick II of Prussia had to say on military matters, but this quote always sticks with me because of the exhortation to think. Military leaders need critical thinking, strategic understanding and adaptability to operate on ever-more complex battlefields, and these come from studying history, appreciating theory and having the kind of enquiring mind that values knowledge. Particularly given the current upheavals in professional military education in the US, we would all do well to remember that modern warfare demands more than brute force – our warfighters need brains as well as brawn.
A reading list on maritime matters
Why Britain Should Scupper the Chagos Islands Deal by Marcus Solarz Hendriks in War on the Rocks – an article version of his recent Policy Exchange report on the same issue, Hendriks makes a strong argument that His Majesty’s (HM) Government has handled this extraordinarily poorly, to the detriment of British security.
There are two excellent technical primers out from the team at Navy Lookout – one on Programme Euston (floating dry docks at Faslane for nuclear submarine maintenance) and another on BAE’s new amphibious warfare concepts.
Littoral Logistics and the Importance of 17 Port and Maritime Regiment by Andrew Young in RUSI Defence Systems – an exploration of the British Army’s reliance on that regiment for seaborne logistics, underpinning its expeditionary capability.
Re-Thinking War in the Baltic Sea by Julian Pawlak for the German Institute for Defence and Strategic Studies – an insightful look at the implications of the ongoing war in the Black Sea for the defence of the Baltic.
Don’t Protect the US Merchant Marine – Promote It by yours truly in War on the Rocks – if you’ll forgive a toot of my own horn, my latest article takes a look at the SHIPS for America Act and the effects of protectionism on American strategic sealift.
And finally, a reminder that applications for our Maritime Leaders’ Programme close on 16th February. The programme aims to foster a dynamic network of young professionals and future leaders in maritime affairs. It will include quarterly mentoring and engagement sessions with key figures from the Royal Navy, Whitehall, academia, and industry, covering topics such as operations, defence policy, strategy, and technological shifts. If you know any potential future stars of the maritime, please encourage them to apply!
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