Russian ship suspected of espionage spotted off Dutch coast
A Russian research ship believed to be used for espionage was sailing along the Dutch coast on Wednesday. This was reported by the investigative journalistic platform Pointer (KRO-NCRV) on Friday. The Yevgeny Gorigledzhan vessel switched off its AIS transmitter shortly after entering the North Sea.
The Yevgeny Gorigledzhan is a Russian Navy oceanographic vessel officially designed for bottom surveys and underwater work. However, according to Pointer, the vessel was likely part of a secret Russian military program established during the Cold War called GUGI.
Pointer reported that the vessel appeared in the Baltic Sea near Germany on Saturday and likely departed shortly beforehand from the port in the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, where the ship was built.
Two days later, it headed for the North Sea. The AIS transmitter was switched off near Aalborg, Denmark. The last signal on Tuesday afternoon indicated that the Russian vessel was turning towards the Netherlands.
AIS transmitters are devices used on ships and vessels to broadcast their position, identity, and other relevant data to nearby ships and monitoring stations. They enhance maritime safety by providing real-time information, helping in navigation and avoiding collisions at sea. It is not mandatory for vessels to transmit an AIS signal.
It remains unknown whether the Dutch navy is monitoring the Yevgeny Gorigledzhan. "We are keeping a close eye on this case. For operational reasons, we are not currently making any statements about how we do this," a Navy spokesperson told the investigative journalistic platform.
In April this year, General Jan Swillens, head of the Dutch military intelligence service MIVD declared that Russia has an extensive program likely aimed at sabotaging offshore wind farms, gas pipelines, and power cables in European waters.
“The Russians do not have one ship, but an entire program that is designed to map the underwater infrastructure, gas pipelines, oil pipelines, and internet cables in particular so that they can act disruptively there,” he told RTL Nieuws at the time.
