The U.S. Armed Forces have denied a claim by Moscow that a Russian destroyer chased a U.S. submarine from Russia’s territorial waters off the Kuril Islands, Belga news agency reports.
According to the Russian Defence Ministry, the Marshall Chapochnikov, a destroyer from Russia’s Pacific Ocean fleet, sent an underwater message ordering the Virginia submarine “to surface immediately.” After it refused, unidentified “appropriate means” were used to force the U.S. submarine to “leave Russia’s territorial waters at full speed,” according to a communique from the Ministry, which said the incident took place at 07:40 GMT on Saturday.
US Navy Captain Kyle Raines, spokesman for the US Indo-Pacific Command, denied the ministry's account. "There is no truth to the Russian claims of our operations in their territorial waters," Captain Raines said. "I will not comment on the precise location of our submarines, but we do fly, sail, and operate safely in international waters," he added.
According to the Russian Defence Ministry, the U.S. submarine had been spotted during routine exercises conducted by the Russian Pacific fleet off the island of Urup, in Russia’s territorial waters. The ministry said it summoned the U.S. military attaché in Russia after the incident.
Contacted by French news agency AFP, the Pentagon originally stated that it had knowledge of press reports on the supposed naval incident in the Pacific but could not confirm the details.
The incident came just a few hours before a telephone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden, amid heightened tension between the United States and Russia over Ukraine.
After the conversation between the two presidents, the Kremlin denounced what it termed U.S. “hysteria” over Ukraine.
