On the eve of the NATO summit, the Netherlands intercepted two Russian ships and a submarine
On the eve of the NATO summit in The Hague on June 24-25, the Dutch navy intercepted Russian warships of various classes, including a submarine, three times in the North Sea, the Dutch Ministry of Defense reported .
The interception was carried out by the multi-purpose frigate Ms. Van Amstel.
The first incident occurred on June 20, when the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich passed the Netherlands through the so-called exclusive economic zone.
Later, the corvette "Boykiy" appeared in the North Sea, and on the day of the summit, Ms. Van Amstel was escorted by a Kilo II-class submarine with a tugboat floating above the water.
A Coast Guard aircraft was also deployed to escort the submarine.
"Although the exclusive economic zone is subject to an internationally agreed right of passage, the Netherlands always escorts Russian and Chinese ships. This is done in order to deter them from engaging in sabotage and espionage activities," the Dutch Ministry of Defense noted.
The agency added that intercepting and escorting Russian ships allows for the protection of critical underwater infrastructure.
- In 2024, a series of incidents occurred in the Baltic Sea in which tankers damaged underwater cables.
- In response, NATO launched a new surveillance mission in the Baltic Sea to prevent attempted attacks on underwater infrastructure in the region.
- The European Commission has prepared a plan for the protection of underwater infrastructure, according to which the EU will allocate hundreds of millions of euros to protect underwater cables from sabotage.
