Belgium and the Netherlands are investigating spying by Russian ships in the North Sea

The military intelligence and security service of the Netherlands discovered a Russian ship near an offshore wind farm in the North Sea. Belgium stated it was also investigating the presence of a Russian ship in the North Sea.

Reuters writes about it.

The Belgian Minister of Justice and the North Sea Vincent Van Quickenborn noted that the Russian ship was detected in mid-November 2022. Although the presence of Russian ships in the North Sea is not prohibited, Belgium has said that it is closely monitoring the situation in the context of Russiaʼs war in Ukraine.

"We donʼt know the exact motives of this Russian ship, but letʼs not be naive. Especially if it is behaving suspiciously near our wind farms, submarine gas cables, data transmission lines and other critical infrastructure,” Van Quickenborn noted.

A Russian ship was also spotted near an offshore wind farm in the Netherlands. He monitored the energy infrastructure. Dutch marines and coast guard ships removed the Russian vessel from the North Sea.

Moscow did not comment on these reports.

• From the beginning of 2023, a law on safety at sea came into force in Belgium, which allows, among other things, video surveillance at sea using mobile cameras on drones or ships.