Russia Rejects U.K. Accusations of Targeting Undersea Cables

Russia connected Thursday denied ever targeting underwater communications cables, a time aft London accused a "Russian spy ship" of passing done British waters and issued a nonstop informing to President Vladimir Putin.

Britain said connected Wednesday that its Royal Navy had tracked the vessel astir 45 miles (72 kilometers) disconnected its coast, saying the vas was being utilized for "gathering intelligence" and had been mapping captious underwater infrastructure.

The accusations travel with interest astir the sabotage of underwater communications links betwixt NATO countries, blamed connected Russia.

In a connection cited by Russian authorities quality agencies, Moscow's Embassy successful London said: "The accusations made by the British defence constitution against Russia of creating immoderate benignant of menace to the underwater communications of the state and its NATO allies are perfectly untenable. Such threats ne'er travel from Russia."

It accused London of "inflaming tensions" successful the Baltic and North Sea.

The Kremlin had earlier declined to remark connected the issue.

British Defense Secretary John Healey told parliament connected Wednesday that the Yantar ("Amber" successful Russian) had been "mapping the U.K.'s captious underwater infrastructure."

"I besides wanted President Putin to perceive this message: 'We spot you, we cognize what you're doing and we volition not shy distant from robust enactment to support this country'," helium told MPs.

Healey said it was the 2nd clip the Yantar had been detected successful British waters successful caller weeks, aft it was spotted successful November.

Several undersea telecom and powerfulness cables person been severed successful the Baltic Sea successful caller months, with experts and politicians accusing Russia of orchestrating a hybrid war.

The sabotage has been blamed connected a "shadow fleet" of vessels — often aging and operating nether opaque ownership — that transportation Russian crude lipid and petroleum products, embargoed since the penetration of Ukraine.

The astir caller incidental occurred connected Dec. 25, erstwhile the Estlink 2 energy cablegram and 4 telecom cables linking Finland and Estonia were damaged.

That came conscionable weeks aft 2 telecom cables successful Swedish waters were severed connected Nov. 17 and 18.

Asked astir Healey's statement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said connected Thursday: "I bash not person accusation connected what this is astir successful detail. So I would not remark connected this."

Relations betwixt Moscow and London person been frosty for years, with Russia singling retired the U.K. arsenic 1 of the astir hostile Western countries, but person dipped to caller lows since Russia launched its subject violative connected Ukraine.

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