Royal Navy warships and helicopters spent 21 days on operations monitoring Russian activity in UK waters and the North Atlantic throughout July – a 25% increase in the last year, new figures released today show.
HMS Somerset, HMS Tyne, HMS Mersey, and HMS Severn were all dispatched, alongside Wildcat helicopters from 815 Naval Air Squadron and Merlin submarine hunting aircraft, to report on the movements of warships and submarines throughout July.
Russian frigate RFN Neustrashimy has repeatedly transited the UK’s area of responsibility to escort shadow fleet tankers within recognized traffic lanes, using up valuable operational capacity to constantly guard cargo.
Overall, Royal Navy activations to monitor Russian activity is up 25% across the first seven months of the year compared to 2025. It comes after the UK interdicted a sanctioned shadow fleet oil tanker, Smyrtos, in the English Channel in June.
The UK is a leader in tackling the shadow fleet, having already sanctioned more than 500 vessels, and Russia’s oil and gas revenues falling by 24% year-on-year in 2025.
By disrupting the shadow fleet, the UK and international partners are directly bearing down on the resources sustaining Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and reducing its capacity to threaten security across Europe and beyond.
Portsmouth-based HMS Tyne was on duty when Neustrashimy carried out gunnery firings outside of UK and French territorial waters on July 20.
HMS Tyne moved to five nautical miles as the Russian warship fired her armaments, continuing to gather intelligence during the incident, observing the fall of shots fired from her weaponry, including around 20 different shots from main 100mm armament and 30mm battery.
Lieutenant Commander Sam Fields, Commanding Officer of HMS Tyne said, “through sustained presence and close cooperation with allies, HMS Tyne was ideally suited to this task, providing reassurance and monitoring while enabling other Fleet units to continue their operational commitments.”