Ukraine war: Sunak briefed as Russian submarine spotted off coast of Scotland

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak arrives at the Ukraine peace summit in Obbürgen, Switzerland, Saturday, June 15, 2024. Photo / AP

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was briefed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) after a Russian submarine, Kazan, was sighted off Scotland’s west coast last week near a naval base at Faslane.

Kazan, which did not enter United Kingdom waters, was identified by an RAF Poseidon P8 anti-submarine aircraft as it passed Ireland on June 5 as part of routine monitoring.

The nuclear-powered submarine has left the Cuban capital of Havana with other Russian Navy vessels after a military drill in the Caribbean over the weekend.

Both the United States and Cuba played down the threat posed by the stopover, which was widely seen as a Russian show of force amid continued high tensions over the Ukraine war.

A US intelligence officer told CBS, that Kazan was not carrying nuclear weapons.

It comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay a “friendly state visit” to North Korea for the first time since 2000 today and tomorrow – marking an extremely rare trip that underscores Moscow’s burgeoning partnership with the reclusive nuclear-armed state.

The visit was confirmed yesterday by the Kremlin and North Korean state media after Kim Jong Un initially extended the invite to the Russian president during a visit to Russia’s Far East last September.

The nuclear-powered Russian submarine Kazan leaves the port of Havana, Cuba. Photo / AP

He will then travel to Vietnam for a two-day visit dedicated to advancing Moscow and Hanoi’s “comprehensive strategic partnership”, after an invitation from Nguyen Phu Trong, the state’s communist party chief.