The Threat of Russian Spy Ship Yantar in UK Waters

The Russian ship Yantar has aimed lasers at the crews of UK Royal Air Force aircraft in waters off the north of Scotland. While the Yantar has been a worrying presence around critical undersea infrastructure for years now, this development represents a concerning escalation by the Russians.

The Yantar is officially an oceanographic research vessel. As it is bristling with surveillance equipment as well as serving as the mother ship for manned and unmanned deep-sea submersibles, it could more accurately be described as a spy ship. It is believed to be surveying the seabed and mapping vital undersea infrastructure.

The submersibles are believed to be able to sever communications cables and to damage pipelines miles beneath the ocean’s surface. The Yantar has been lingering in the waters around the UK and Ireland for the last year.

In November 2024, Yantar entered Irish-controlled waters near where critical energy pipelines and data cables connect Ireland with Britain. The spy ship was escorted out of the Irish Sea by the Irish offshore patrol vessel LÉ James Joyce.

This week, John Healey, the UK defence secretary, has said that Yantar used lasers for the first time to disrupt RAF pilots tracking its activity near UK waters. He told reporters the “deeply dangerous” move from the Yantar was being taken “extremely seriously” by the government. He added that the vessel was north of Scotland and had entered UK waters for the second time this year during the last few weeks. The UK would continue monitoring the ship and had “military options ready should the Yantar change course,” he added.

“My message to Russia and to Putin is this: we see you. We know what you’re doing. And if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready,” he added.

Healey said the laser incident took place whilst the Yantar was being followed by a Royal Navy frigate and RAF Poseidon P-8 planes deployed to “track the vessel’s every move”. It is understood the episode occurred within the last two weeks.

Speaking at a news conference in Downing Street, the defence secretary added he had changed the Royal Navy’s rules of engagement so that it could follow the Yantar more closely “when it is in our wider waters”.

Healey said the vessel, which entered service in 2015, was part of Russia’s Main Directorate for Deep Sea Research (GUGI), which was designed to “undertake surveillance in peacetime and sabotage in conflict”.

“We have military options ready should the Yantar change course. I am not going to reveal those because that only makes President Putin wiser,” he said.

Asked about the risks posed by lasers, Healey replied: “Anything that impedes, disrupts, or puts at risk pilots in charge of British military planes is deeply dangerous.”