Why you might see a Russian warship when you are sailing in the Channel

A sailing incident in the English Channel on June 16 involved a Russian warship and raised questions about navigation rules for vessels in international waters. British couple Jane and Alan Kelvey departed Lymington in the New Forest and reported encountering the Admiral Grigorovich, a frigate located about 23 miles (37 km) off the Isle of Wight. Russia’s defense ministry said the yacht made a “dangerous approach,” while the Kelveys said they were not on a collision course. The article explains that warships regularly transit the Channel, monitored by Royal Navy vessels and overseen by the U.K. Ministry of Defence, and that movements fall under the rights of innocent passage rather than territorial waters. Maritime law expert Stephen Askins said warships must avoid loitering but can pass through narrow waterways and still comply with collision regulations governing who gives way. A separate comment from Dave Robson of Hamble School of Yachting emphasized the responsibility to avoid collisions, outlining stand-on versus giveaway obligations. The episode reportedly occurred about 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight, outside U.K. territorial waters.