Armed Russian frigate seen conducting "live gunnery exercises" spotted as Royal Navy's HMS Mersey scrambled

An armed Russian frigate that recently carried out “live gunnery exercises” has been spotted near British waters - with the Royal Navy scrambled to respond.

Kremlin frigate RFS Neustrashimy was initially seen off the coast of Folkestone. Portsmouth-based patrol vessel HMS Mersey was deployed to monitor the warship on the afternoon of August 10.

Nigel Scutt, who runs the Dover Strait Shipping social media account and regularly tracks Moscow ships, said RFS Neustrashimy was seen “conducting live gunnery exercises” twice recently, once roughly 45 miles from the UK and another near the French coast with a yacht,

“Neustrashimy has replaced the Gorshkov as the ‘channel picket boat’, the fleet unit deployed to loiter in local waters, here and at times escort sanctioned Russian oil being transported through the English Channel,” he told The News. “It is a concern, but one that the Royal Navy is well used to these days, even with a limited number of ships to do.”

Mr Scutt described the ship as “the dedicated Russian asset in the North Sea and English Channel”. He added the frigate will be primarily tasked with escorting shadow fleet tankers often carrying “sanctioned cargo and hardware”.

When asked if he believes Britain can handle increased Russian activity, he added: “The Royal Navy ships operate on an extended basis with more sea days, There is always a fleet ready escort.. Failing that, they’ll rely on a Tide-class Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship. The problem with seizing them is what do you do afterwards.”

Sign up for The Week in Defence with Freddie Webb - our newsletter rounding up the sector’s must-read stories

RFS Kastanov was also seen on Sunday afternoon (August 9) alongside the fleet tanker Akademik Pashin, progressing north to the French coast and away from their bases in the Mediterranean. More of Putin’s warships are being seen protecting shadow fleet tankers.

This comes after Royal Marines Commandos seized MV Smyrtos in the English Channel, with the ship believed to have been carrying sanctioned oil to fund Moscow’s war effort against Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin described the incident as “piracy”, and threatened to seize British vessels.

The MoD said in its annual report that Royal Navy vessels had been “activated” 116 times in the year to March 2026, shadowing 61 Russian warships and 28 merchant vessels around the UK’s waters. This reflected a 30 per cent increase in Russian naval activity over the previous two years.