Russia menaced frigate, Dutch say

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Russian fighter jets repeatedly flew low over a Dutch navy frigate in the Black Sea last week and carried out “mock attacks,” the Defense Ministry of the Netherlands said Tuesday.

The incident involving the Dutch ship, Zr. Ms. Evertsen, happened June 23 southeast of Crimea, the ministry said in a statement.

It came a day after after Russia said one of its warships in the Black Sea fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs to force a British destroyer out of an area near Crimea that Russia claims as its territorial waters. Britain denied that account and insisted its ship wasn’t fired upon.

The Evertsen has been patrolling in the Black Sea with HMS Defender, the British ship that was involved in that incident.

Defense Minister Minister Ank Bijleveld-Schouten called the Russian actions “irresponsible.”

“Evertsen has every right to sail there,” she said. “There is no justification whatsoever for this kind of aggressive act, which also unnecessarily increases the chance of accidents.”

She said the Netherlands would speak to Russia about the incident.

The ministry said that the Russian jets, armed with bombs and air-to-surface rockets flew past the frigate between 3:30 p.m and 8:30 p.m. and were followed by “disruptions to the Evertsen’s electronic equipment.”

Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move not recognized by most countries, gaining access to its long Black Sea coast. Russia has chafed at NATO warships visiting near Crimea as destabilizing. In April, it declared a broader area off Crimea closed to foreign naval ships.

In April, Russia imposed restrictions on foreign naval movements near Crimea until November in a move that drew strong complaints from Ukraine and the West. Russia rejected the criticism and noted the restrictions wouldn’t interfere with commercial shipping.