‘Aggressive’ Russian naval ship nearly collided with US destroyer in Middle East, Pentagon says
- Vessel ignored warning blasts from USS Farragut and came extremely close before turning away, said US Navy 5th Fleet
- Footage shows Russian ship rapidly approaching US destroyer
The Pentagon accused the Russian navy on Friday of “aggressive” actions in the Arabian Sea after one of their ships very nearly collided with a US Navy destroyer.
The Russian ship ignored collision warning blasts from the USS Farragut and came extremely close before turning away, narrowly averting a crash, said the US Navy 5th Fleet, which released video footage of the incident.
“While the Russian ship took action, the initial delay in complying with international rules while it was making an aggressive approach increased the risk of collision,” the fleet said in a statement.
The video shows the Russian vessel rapidly approaching the stern of the 155 metre (510-foot) US warship.
It closed dangerously within tens of metres, ignoring five short blasts sounded by the Farragut, the international maritime signal for collision danger.