Based on ‘declassified intelligence’, UK says Russia targeting civilian shipping on approaches to Black Sea ports
Britain has accused Russia of plotting to sabotage civilian tankers loaded with Ukrainian grain by planting sea mines on the approaches to the country’s Black Sea ports.
Based on what it said was declassified intelligence, the UK said Russia did not want to directly attack merchant ships using Ukraine’s newly created humanitarian corridor with missiles, but instead try to destroy them covertly.
Russia would then seek to blame Ukraine for the loss of any shipping in an attempt to evade responsibility, the British Foreign Office continued, and the UK said it was going public in order to deter Moscow from carrying out the plan.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Based on what it said was declassified intelligence, the UK said Russia did not want to directly attack merchant ships using Ukraine’s newly created humanitarian corridor with missiles, but instead try to destroy them covertly.
Russia would then seek to blame Ukraine for the loss of any shipping in an attempt to evade responsibility, the British Foreign Office continued, and the UK said it was going public in order to deter Moscow from carrying out the plan.
James Cleverly, the UK foreign secretary, accused Russia of the “pernicious targeting” of civilian shipping: “The world is watching – and we see right through Russia’s cynical attempts to lay blame on Ukraine for their attacks.”
Kyiv created an alternative humanitarian corridor in August, in which ships travel inside the territorial waters of Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania, before passing close to Ukraine, where they are at risk of Russian attack.
Britain said it wanted to work with Ukraine and others to improve the safety of merchant shipping, using intelligence and surveillance capabilities, although it acknowledges the threat from Russia remains “at the highest level”.
Last month, the UK said Russia had, in August, fired two Kalibr cruise missiles at a Libyan-flagged tanker in Odesa.
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