The Finnish defence ministry and coastguard announced the violation in the eastern Gulf of Finland in separate statements -- the latest of several recent border incidents between the two countries.
"The Russian Baltic Fleet research vessel Mikhail Kazansky crossed the external border of Finnish territorial waters" east of Helsinki early on Tuesday afternoon, the coastguard said in a statement sent to AFP.
It said the vessel travelled about 1.2 nautical miles in Finnish territorial waters and left them seven minutes later.
It said a Finnish patrol boat tried several times to contact the Russian vessel without success.
Relations between the countries, who share a 1,340-kilometre-long (830-mile) border, have worsened since Finland joined the western military alliance NATO last year, in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The previous territorial incident took place on June 10 when Finnish authorities said four Russian state aircraft entered Finland's airspace off the coast in the same region.
The aircraft remained in Finnish airspace for about two minutes and flew up to 2.5 kilometres into Finnish territory, the ministry said at the time.
Announcing Friday's incident earlier, Finland's defence ministry said the border guard force was investigating.
Finland closed its land border with Russia in December, accusing Moscow of trying to destabilise it by enabling undocumented migrants to enter Finnish territory.
Russian warship docks in Algeria
Moscow (AFP) July 26, 2024 -
A Russian warship armed with advanced hypersonic missiles docked at a port in Algeria on Friday for a "business call", the navy said.
Moscow and Algiers have close historic relations dating back to the Soviet era and have maintained strong defence and military ties amid Russia's military offensive on Ukraine.
The Russian navy frigate Admiral Gorshkov and a support vessel docked at the Port of Oran on Friday, Russia's Northern Fleet said in a statement.
"The visit of the Russian sailors will last several days," it said.
The crews will take part in various protocol events, replenish food and water supplies, visit local attractions and rest on shore, it added.
The Admiral Gorshkov, equipped with hypersonic Zircon missiles, is currently on a long-distance voyage which has seen it cross the Atlantic and back, docking in Cuba and Venezuela.
"The ship, armed with high-precision missile weapons, is capable of delivering precise and powerful strikes against the enemy at sea and land," Russia's defence ministry said.
The voyage is intended to "demonstrate the flag and ensure naval presence in operationally important areas of the distant ocean zone," it added.
Related Links
Naval Warfare in the 21st Century
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
