Has a Russian ship “disguised” touched the French and British coasts?

A few days ago, a Russian ship crossed the Channel, hiding its identity. Therefore, THE Boïkiythis is the name of this Russian corvette equipped with guided missiles. Furthermore, discreetly passed through the Strait of Pas-de-Calais on Sunday, June 22, a stone’s throw from the French and British coast. Moreover, At first glance, nothing illegal. Consequently, Except that according to a BBC surveythis military building would have deliberately shared a false maritime identity during its passage. Nevertheless, This constitutes a extremely rare practice for a state navy. Moreover, and all the more in the immediate vicinity of NATO waters.

According to the data analyzed by the BBC. russian ship “disguised” touched french Similarly, the Boïkiy In fact disabled its automatic identification system (AIS), then would have reappeared briefly under the code “400000000” – a generic identifier sometimes used by ships wishing to report their presence without identifying. The code in question was detected off the Canary Islands. on a trajectory deemed as “coherent” with the departure of the ship from Guinea where it participated in a diplomatic mission.

The satellite images. the videos of his passage under the Danish bridge of the “Great Belt” as well as the comparison of the dimensions of the ship made it possible to confirm that it is Boïkiyand not another building that would have used this same AIS code. These are digital camouflage, described as “extremely unusual” by a former Belgian navy officer interviewed by the English chain.

Russian ship &quot. disguised" touched french – Russian ship "disguised" touched french

An escort for the “Shadow Fleet”

Even more disturbing: the Boïkiy did not sail alone. Two oil tankers. the Sierra and the Naxosboth sanctioned by the United Kingdom for transporting Russian oil despite the embargoes in force, joined him at the entrance to the Channel. According to satellite follow -up, russian ship “disguised” touched french they even waited for the military escort before engaging in the Strait.

These ships would belong to the Russian “shadow fleet”. a ghost fleet operating under pavilions of complacency, whose real property is often hidden via screens. According to several analysts, the military escort of Boïkiy aimed to dissuade any attempted interception by Western navies. A few weeks ago. a Russian SU-35 fighter plane had already flew over a ship of the said “Shadow Fleet” when it had been approached by the Estonian authorities.

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A strategic maritime corridor

The passage in the handle is not really trivial. It is in fact a (narrow) strategic maritime corridor. bordered by France and the United Kingdom, in the heart of European commercial roads.

The BBC investigation service contacted the British Defense Minister. who confirmed that the English navy had “followed” the Russian ship during its crossing. No information has yet russian ship “disguised” touched french been communicated on the French side.