The surveillance Vasily Tatishchev vessel was reportedly spotted in the Baltic Sea between Fehmarn and the Kiel lighthouse, right outside German and Danish territory.
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Initially stationed in Kaliningrad, the spy ship was following the units of the NATO exercise Baltic Operations, Bild reports citing sources in Kieler Nachrichten.
The spy ship sailed past Rügen and Rostock to Kiel on Wednesday – but federal police are only taking action if German or Danish territory is entered.
A spokesperson for the Bad Bramstedt Federal Police Directorate explained: “Violations of the shipping regulations have not been identified so far.”
The spy ship was built in Poland between 1985 and 1988 the outlet reports.
It was commissioned in 1988 and is one of two ships of this type in the Baltic Sea.
The nature of the ship’s operation remains unknown- but Moscow has the technology to locate cell phone signals and even listen in on unencrypted phone calls.
Similar threats in the Baltic Sea have been increasing with the most recent strike affecting crucial satellite navigation systems.
A spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Defense said: “The ongoing disruptions are most likely of Russian origin and are based on disturbances in the electromagnetic spectrum, originating, among other places, in the Kaliningrad Oblast.”
It is not the first time a Russian vessel has been spotted near European waters.
Last year an armed guard was seen on Admiral Vladimirsky suspected of preparing to sabotage the UK power supply and cut internet cables.
Russia claims the ship is a scientific research vessel but it has long been suspected of being used for espionage.
And in 2021, Putin’s Yantar spy ship was caught loitering above major undersea cables off the Irish coastline.
The vessel was above at least one commercial sub-sea cable and was seen zig-zagging through seas north of Mayo and Donegal in an apparent search for more.
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