The British couple whose yacht faced warning shots from a Russian warship in the Channel have accused the UK Ministry of Defence of trying to “close down” their story.
In an incident described by the UK prime minister as “reckless” but not “sinister”, sailors on the frigate Admiral Grigorovich fired several warning shots near the yacht Bright Future, crewed by Jane and Alan Kelvey on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said its assessment is that the shots were intended as a warning after the yacht came too close to the frigate and had come after the warship’s crew had attempted to contact the Kelveys by radio.
But speaking to the Telegraph on Wednesday, Kelvey disputed this version of events.
He said: “The MoD are saying they got us on the radio. Our radio, we were right next to it. It didn’t come on our radio.”
Kelvey, 70, told the newspaper: “They’re trying to close the story down now, saying that it was foggy and they were shooting flares up. It’s rubbish.”
He said he and his wife had seen no flares, and denied there was any problem with visibility, saying they and the Russian vessel could see each other “clearly”.
Asked why he thought the MoD was seeking to downplay the incident, he said: “It’s inflammatory, isn’t it?”
The Russian defence ministry has claimed the yacht was following a “dangerous course” and said the Admiral Grigorovich had used flares and sounded signals before firing warning shots “in strict accordance” with shipping regulations.
The incident, which took place outside UK territorial waters south of the Isle of Wight, came during a period of heightened tension between Britain and Russia following the seizure of the “shadow fleet” oil tanker Smyrtos on Sunday.
The Admiral Grigorovich, which has escorted sanctioned vessels through the English Channel in the past, was being monitored by the patrol ship HMS Mersey at the time of the incident.
I think it’s reckless, but it does look as if the MoD assessment is it was drifting, and that’s what it is. Now, that doesn’t take away from the fact that clearly Russia is aggressive across Europe
Speaking to GB News at the G7 summit in Evian, France, on Wednesday, Keir Starmer said the incident “shouldn’t have happened”.
He said: “I think it’s reckless, but it does look as if the MoD assessment is it was drifting, and that’s what it is.
“Now, that doesn’t take away from the fact that clearly Russia is aggressive across Europe.”
But he said: “The incident in the Channel… (the) MoD assessment is that it was actually a drifting warship, rather than anything more sinister.”
Asked about the couple’s claim the MoD was attempting to close the story down, a Downing Street spokeswoman pointed to the department’s assessment that it was an isolated event.
She also referred to the prime minister’s words that it was “concerning” and “reckless” and that Russia was an aggressor across Europe.
Downing Street also appeared to rule out taking further action against Russia over the incident.
Asked whether the Russian ambassador would be summoned, the spokeswoman said: “HMS Mersey was shadowing the ship, so we are taking action…
“It is the MoD assessment that this is an isolated incident.
“But as we have shown, we are willing to stand up to Russia where it’s in our interest to do so, as we did with the interception of a Russian shadow fleet vessel over the weekend.”
