Eerily reminiscent of Cold War divisions, as international powers drag themselves into an unikely dark secretive world of decades past, an alert has sounded in the UK after a Russian spy ship was spotted on the edge of British territorial waters.
The 'Yantar' has been hovering in the wider maritime area of the country, off the northern shores of Scotland for weeks now, said defence minister John Healy.
'It's a boat designed to collect information on our underwater cabling and charting their course', the British official added.
A Royal Navy frigate and RAF fighter jets had been deployed in the region to monitor its every move, but the Yantar turned aggressive, he stressed.
'It turned its lasers on our pilots', Healy noted, adding that this action was supremely dangerous'.
It was the second time that the 'Yantar' had deployed in British waters, with London sending a clear message to Moscow and President Putin.
'We see you, we know what you're doing and if you're ship travels further south this week, we're ready for you'.
Commenting in more general terms on the international state of affairs, Healy stressed that the world was changing and is becoming much less predictable.
'The Israel-Iran war brought the Middle East to the edge of the precipice over the past year, India and Pakistan clashed, Chinese spies target British democracy from within and Putin is intensifying his war', the British defence minister concluded.
European skies have been plagued by drones of late, Healy warned, as Russia doubled its invasion of NATO airspace and the UK faced 90 thousand cyber attacks on its defence system.
'It's a time of threat calling for tough power'.
Source: Cnn.gr