The government has given further details on the incident in which a laser was directed at British military personnel from the Russian vessel Yantar, a ship linked to Moscow’s deep sea intelligence programme.
Carns said the ship forms part of Russia’s Main Directorate of Deep Sea Research, a long standing effort to examine and potentially target undersea infrastructure in peacetime and conflict. He stated that “the Russian research vessel Yantar is used for gathering intelligence and mapping undersea infrastructure, not just in the United Kingdom, but across many other nations.”
He added that the vessel is one of several platforms intended to identify and threaten pipelines, cables and other critical systems that underpin national economies.
According to the minister, a Royal Navy posture change was ordered earlier this year to ensure more persistent tracking of Russian specialist vessels. Yantar has been operating around the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone for the second time in 2025, with HMS Somerset and an RAF P8 maritime patrol aircraft continuously monitoring its movements.
Carns said the laser incident occurred during that surveillance. Personnel aboard the P8 reported a light source “assessed to be originating from the port side of the Yantar” directed at the crew during a monitoring run. He characterised it as “a highly dangerous and reckless attempt to disrupt our monitoring.” The aircraft completed its task and returned to base, where the crew were medically assessed. No injuries or equipment damage were found.
The minister argued that the episode aligns with Russia’s long term strategy of developing covert capabilities for use against underwater infrastructure. He said that such systems are designed to be employed in ways that complicate attribution and allow plausible deniability. Despite this, he stressed that the UK will maintain a forward posture, stating “we will not let the Yantar go unchallenged as it attempts to survey our infrastructure.”
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