A MILITARY OPERATION is underway about 200km off the Cork coast as British and US forces monitor two Russian warships patrolling in the area.

A Russian Naval tanker, the Vyazma, has been operating in the Celtic Sea and the St George’s Channel area in recent days. 

The Journal has learned that she is accompanied by at least two Russian warships – as of lunchtime they were approximately 100 nautical miles south of Cork Harbour. 

The Russian vessels are in international waters but well within Ireland’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

The ships had been tracking north towards the Irish Sea but early this morning turned around and are now heading south west. 

A British Naval vessel, HMS Lancaster, is shadowing the vessels understood to be the cruiser Marshal Ustinov and the destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov. 

Sources have said that the Russian vessels are so fuel inefficient that they require an oil tanker to accompany them. 

In a rare departure from normal naval operations the British vessel has switched on its AIS transponder and can be seen on apps such as Marine Traffic. 

Earlier this morning a P8 Poseidon US Naval maritime aircraft left Iceland and is understood to have headed down the west Irish coast in the direction of the Russian vessels. 

The flotilla of Russian ships came up the Portuguese coast in recent days having crossed into the Atlantic from the Mediterranean at Gibraltar. Sources believe they will either go through the Irish Sea or into the English Channel. They have been monitored by the British Frigate throughout that journey. 

The Irish Air Corps are understood to have dispatched a surveillance aircraft to monitor the movements of the ships over recent days also while the Irish Naval Service were working to dispatch a ship to observe.

It is understood an Irish naval vessel is due on a courtesy visit to a European neighbour in the coming days.

The Russians, sources said, have been “loitering” in the area for several weeks with other vessels patrolling in the Atlantic.

A source said that the Irish navy was observing Russian naval ships and another tanker, the Akademik Pashin, in the last two weeks in the same area of sea. 

Sources said the reason for the Russian operations in the area is one of “posturing and force projection”.

The Vyazma also accompanied Russian naval vessels to missile exercises off the south coast earlier in the year. 

On that occasion the French military, HMS Argyle and the US Navy’s USS Roosevelt as well as Irish naval and Air Corps crews monitored the activities.

The two Russian ships, the Soobrazitelniy and the Stoykiy had travelled south, via the English Channel.

They then made their way to the Black Sea where they participated in the war against Ukraine. 

The Irish Defence Forces said they “aware of this activity and are monitoring the situation.