SAIL BETWEEN THEIR LEGS
Britain RUBBISHES Russian claim of ‘war drills’ in channel & says Vlad’s ship quietly ‘transited’ under our watchful eye
The ship is armed with 6,900mph Tsirkon hypersonic missiles
THE Royal Navy has rubbished Russia's claims its "most dangerous" warship held military drills in the English Channel.
State media reported the ultra-modern Admiral Golovko practised combat against mock enemies while passing through.
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Sabre-rattling Putin deployed the Project 22350 warship from its Arctic home base in Severomorsk 11 days ago for its maiden long-distance voyage.
It is feared to be the Kremlin's most dangerous warship and is the first to the armed with 6,900mph Tsirkon hypersonic missiles.
Russian media claimed that as it went through the Channel, the crew conducted “anti-terrorist drills” repelling aerial and marine drones of a “mock enemy”.
But the Navy has dismissed this, saying the ship passed through the Channel under its watchful eye escorted by HMS Iron Duke.
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Footage, likely taken in another part of the ocean, shows the warship staging exercises while out at sea.
Russian defence ministry TV channel Zvezda claimed: “The crew of the Admiral Golovko frigate of the Russian Navy's Northern Fleet held exercises in the English Channel.
“The sailors practiced anti-submarine and anti-aircraft defence, and conducted a training rescue operation using Ka-27 helicopters."
The 443ft-long Admiral Golovko has now passed through the English Channel and is understood to the "performing missions" in the Atlantic Ocean.
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State news agency TASS said: “The main goals of the long-distance deployment are to demonstrate the Russian flag and ensure Russia’s naval presence in operationally important areas of the world ocean.”
The 5,400 ton Admiral Golovko joined the naval in December and is the third frigate in the Project 22350 series.
Putin came so close to launching a nuke that crisis meetings were held over fallout hitting BRITAIN
As well as Tsirkon, the frigate is armed with a 130mm A-192 artillery system, a Redut air-defense missile system, launchers for 16 Oniks or Kalibr-NK anti-ship missiles and a Paket-NK anti-submarine system.
Admiral Golovko's voyage comes amid high tension between Moscow and the West over Putin's war against Ukraine.
During a visit to Paris this week, PM Sir Keir Starmer discussed putting Ukraine "in the strongest possible position going into winter” with French president Emmanuel Macron.
The leaders vowed to support the war-torn country for as long as necessary "to thwart Russia's war of aggression".
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Last week, Macron met with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss further military aid.
It comes as questions are raised about president-elect Donald Trump's support for Ukraine after claiming he could end the war "in one day".
During the campaign the Republican did not reveal his peace plan, but ending the war in Ukraine will be one of his first objectives.
Trump would freeze the conflict in place and establish a demilitarised zone down the locked front line, the .
Kyiv would not join Nato for 20 years, but the US would continue to arm Ukraine to the teeth to prevent Putin from invading again.
Who would police the demilitarised zone remains unclear, according to the sources, but it wouldn't involve American troops or an international body.
An anonymous member of the Trump team said: "We can do training and other support but the barrel of the gun is going to be European.
"We are not sending American men and women to uphold peace in Ukraine. And we are not paying for it. Get the Poles, Germans, British and French to do it."
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It remains unclear if the Ukrainians approve of the plan - but Zelenksy has already spoken to the president-elect.
Zelensky wrote on Telegram that he had an "excellent" call with Trump and congratulated him on his landslide victory.
What will Putin do next?
VLADIMIR Putin is on the cusp of launching a huge attack on Kursk.
The despot has been left reeling after Russia is understood to have suffered its deadliest day of the war in Ukraine, with 1,770 killed and wounded.
Now Vlad has readied up to 50,000 soldiers as he plots to launch a counteroffensive in Kursk.
The Kremlin leader is set to try and claw back the area of Russia which Ukraine seized back in August.
US and Ukrainian officials say 10,000 of the 50,000 massed troops are North Koreans.
The combined assault could begin within days, according to Ukrainian officials.
Putin's army has also been training the North Koreans in infantry tactics, artillery fire, and trench clearing.
Ukraine has built defences in the part of Kursk it occupies and could be able to hold on, officials say.
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