Ireland is “quite constrained” in how it can deal with a Russian spy ship that is due to arrive in Irish waters.
The ship has already been accused of “deeply dangerous” behaviour by British Defence Secretary John Healy, who claimed that its crew pointed lasers at RAF pilots when it arrived off the coast of Scotland.
With the ship thought to be heading towards Ireland, potentially mapping Europe’s subsea infrastructure on its way, former head of the Defence Forces Vice Admiral Mark Mellett described the Yantar as a “cause for concern”.
“For the last 20 years we’ve seen pretty aggressive Russian action in terms of its invasion of Georgia in 2008, Crimea in 2014 and the very hostile attack on Ukraine in 2022,” he explained to Newstalk Breakfast.
“Parallel to that, there has been a hybrid action and warfare with Europe very much on the defence and Russia on the offence.
“We see that using actions such as subversion, sabotage, disinformation, drones and interest in critical underwater infrastructure - that’s what the Yantar specialises in.”
Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council. Picture by: Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo.The Yantar is classified as a warship under Article 29 in the Law of the Sea Convention and because of that enjoys sovereign immunity.
Vice Admiral Mellett added that this means the Navy would be “very challenged” in terms of how it can deal with the ship.
“Effectively, the high seas are outside our territorial waters, outside 12 nautical miles [off our coast],” he said.
“When it’s inside our economic zone, the sovereign rights we enjoy are very particular; they’re about seabed and subsea resources.
“The Yantar has an entitlement to enter our economic zone and we’re quite constrained in what we can do and what we can’t do.
“What we can do is gather information to see what its activities are; if those activities are perverse, then it’s a matter for Government to deal with that.
“That can start with a demarche - a notice from the Irish authorities to the Russian authorities - to desist in terms of what it is doing.
“That’s probably why a Naval Patrol vessel and probably Air Corps assets will be deployed if it comes down to our jurisdiction.”
Be in no doubt, we live in a new era of threat.
A Russian spy ship, the Yantar, returned to UK waters and directed lasers at our pilots.
Our government will always do what’s needed to defend Britain, and our Armed Forces stand ready to deter. pic.twitter.com/SpxwFiNnKF
— John Healey (@JohnHealey_MP) November 19, 2025
Mr Mellett said while he has “real confidence” in the men and women of the Defence Forces but that their capabilities remain “very limited”.
He urged the Government to “invest in our Defence Forces” and bring their capabilities up to a “level that is appropriate”.
In Budget 2026, the Department of Defence was allocated €1.5 billion to spend - an 11% increase on the previous year.
Some of that has been earmarked for big ticket capital projects - such as a radar system - that Ministers have long acknowleged a need for.
Main image: The Yantar and an Irish soldier. Pictures by: British MOD and Alamy.com.
