UK defense secretary warns Russia over spy ship course

LONDON (AP) — Britain warned Russia on Wednesday that it was ready to deal with any incursions into its territory after the spy ship Yantar was detected on the edge of U.K. waters north of Scotland.

Defense Secretary John Healey said the Russian vessel had directed lasers at pilots of surveillance aircraft monitoring its activities.

“My message to Russia and to Putin is this: We see you. We know what you’re doing,’’ Healey said during a briefing in London. “And if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.”

British officials said the Yantar is part of the Russian navy, designed to conduct surveillance in peacetime and sabotage during times of war. Because of this, the U.K. and its allies track the ship and work to deter its operations whenever it approaches British territorial waters.

“It is part of a Russian fleet designed to put and hold our undersea infrastructure and those of our allies at risk,” Healey said, referencing attacks on pipelines and cables under the Baltic Sea earlier this year.

This isn’t the first time the Yantar has probed Britain’s defenses, Healey said. After a warning last year, the Yantar left U.K. waters for the Mediterranean. When the Russian ship later sailed through the English Channel in January, it was followed by HMS Somerset, a frigate assigned to homeland defense in the waters around Britain.

伦敦（美联社）——英国周三警告俄罗斯，在间谍船“琥珀号”被发现出现在苏格兰北部英国水域边缘后，英国已准备好应对任何对其领土的入侵。

美国国防部长约翰·希利表示，俄罗斯舰艇曾用激光照射监视其活动的侦察机飞行员。

“我要向俄罗斯和普京传达的信息是：我们看到了你们。我们知道你们在做什么，”希利在伦敦的一次简报会上说。“如果‘琥珀号’导弹本周南下，我们已经做好了准备。”

英国官员表示，“琥珀”号隶属于俄罗斯海军，其设计用途是在和平时期进行监视，在战争时期进行破坏活动。因此，英国及其盟国会跟踪这艘舰艇，并在其接近英国领海时采取措施阻止其行动。

“这是俄罗斯舰队的一部分，其目的是危及我们和我们盟友的海底基础设施，”希利说道，他指的是今年早些时候波罗的海海底管道和电缆遭到的袭击。

希利表示，这并非“琥珀”号首次试探英国的防御能力。去年，在收到警告后，“琥珀”号离开英国水域前往地中海。今年1月，当这艘俄罗斯军舰再次驶入英吉利海峡时，英国皇家海军“萨默塞特”号护卫舰尾随其后，该舰负责英国周边海域的国土防御。