Earlier today, credible reports emerged, primarily from
@_MartinKelly_, that while sailing in the English Channel, the Russian Project 11356R frigate, Admiral Grigorovich, fired warning shots at the British-flagged civilian sailing vessel, Bright Future. Subsequently, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MOD) released a statement detailing the incident, saying that Bright Future, who was not sailing under her own power, ignored repeated warnings from the Russian vessel until it came within 150 meters from the vessel. Per the MOD release, at this point the crew used small arms to fire at the vesselโs course, at which point Bright Future abruptly changed direction. If true, and in accordance with initial speculation, the crew of the Admiral Grigorovich acted within the bounds of maritime law. However, the frigateโs tasking is more murky than the incident itself, as she remains on station in and around the English Channel to escort Russiaโs sanctioned โshadow fleetโ tankers through a recently enforced UK-France maritime gauntlet.