Sailors on board a Russian warship fired warning shots at a civilian yacht near the Isle of Wight in the English Channel that had come near to it.
The United Kingdom Ministry of Defence said it was investigating reports of an incident in the Channel.
No injuries were reported.
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The incident at 11.40am on Tuesday involved the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich and it was being monitored by a UK royal navy vessel at the time, a source familiar with the incident told news agencies.
A UK-registered yacht alleged that a Russian navy vessel had fired the warning shots at a distance of about 500 metres, the source said.
A warning shot reportedly involved Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich near the Isle of Wight. Credit: AAP
It took place about 20 nautical miles south of the Isle of Wight, outside UK territorial waters.
On Sunday, UK commandos boarded and intercepted a sanctioned Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker in the Channel, leading for the first time an operation to disrupt the oil revenue that helps fund Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The source said Tuesday’s event was not viewed as being linked to that operation and was being treated as an isolated incident.
The Russian embassy in London did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
-with PA
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