Dutch Navy escorts Russian spy ship out of North Sea
The Dutch Navy escorted the Russian research vessel Yantar out of the Dutch part of the North Sea earlier this week, the Ministry of Defense reported on Thursday. The military intelligence service MIVD has been warning of Russian research vessels for some time, including the Yantar, which is often described as a spy ship. Earlier this month, the Navy escorted a damaged Russian submarine through the area, along with a tugboat.
According to the Ministry, the Yantar was active in the Dutch part of the North Sea earlier this week, but remained outside of the Netherlands’ territorial waters. The Navy deployed two vessels to assess the situation, the Zr. Ms. Snellius and Zr. Ms. Friesland.
The Friesland monitored the Yantar and escorted it out of the North Sea on Tuesday. The Snellius checked the condition of the submarine infrastructure in the area where the Yantar was active. The Netherlands maintains critically important infrastructure systems in the North Sea, including gas pipelines, a power network, and data cabling.
The Dutch Navy is increasingly escorting suspected Russian vessels out of the North Sea. The number almost doubled in the past year, from 11 Russian ships in 2023 to 20 last year. Russian ships often carry armed soldiers, and Russian maritime law allows the country to command civilian vessels sailing under its flag to carry out military missions.
It is not even the first time this year that the Yantar was spotted in the region. It navigated the English Channel in January. In general, the Dutch Navy is only allowed to track and escort suspicious vessels in the region. More extraordinary circumstances are needed to board a ship sailing through the sea.
The increased presence of Russian ships in the region was described by NATO as both a threat to both European and Euro-Atlantic security. The MIVD and its civilian counterpart, AIVD, started pressing the national government to take a tougher stance in Russia's hybrid war against the Netherlands, including espionage, sabotage, covert influence campaigns, and cyberattacks.
“If we want to be brave, and we will have to be brave at times, then we must also be prepared to escalate. Because Russia deliberately seeks out that ambiguity and toys with it,” said MIVD head Peter Reesink in September.
