Spanish warship steams into British waters off Gibraltar during Royal Navy training exercise – the SECOND such incursion of the day
- British minehunting and patrol ships were involved in a training exercise today
- Sailors were advised to keep their distance prior to exercise off Gibraltan coast
- A Spanish warship entered the waters, but did not disrupt the routine training
- Guardia Civil boat was then escorted toward Marbella by Royal Navy patrols
A Spanish warship was escorted from Gibraltan waters this morning after it entered during a Royal Navy training exercise – followed by a Spanish police boat hours later.
Minehunting ships HMS Chiddingfold and HMS Penzance were on the water near Europa Point, Gibraltar’s southern-most point, training three Royal Navy Gibraltar squadron ships on Thursday.
It is understood Spanish Navy patrol vessel Rayo P-42 sailed into the British territory’s waters, but did not interfere with the training exercise.
The Spanish Navy patrol vessel Rayo P-42 sailed into British waters off the coast of Gibraltar this morning, as Royal Navy minehunters led a training exercise
Government officials say the incursion did not interfere with the training exercise between two minehunters and ships from Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron
Mariners in Gibraltar had been told to keep away from the waters where the naval forces were training on Thursday.
The Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation warned there would be a ‘surface exercise with high speed maneuvering and blank firing’ between 10.30am and 2pm today.
After the exercise was complete, the warship was escorted from Gibraltan waters. This is thought to be the 18th incursion into the British territory this year.
A Spanish Guardia Civil boat was later spotted in the water and was accompanied toward Marbella by HMS Sabre.
HMS Sabre also escorted a Guardia Civil ship toward Marbella after it emerged from the Bay of Gibraltar
A statement from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office read this evening: ‘Incursions are a violation of sovereignty, not a threat to it.
‘We have no doubt about our sovereignty over Gibraltar.
‘The Royal Navy challenges all incursions into British Gibraltar Territorial Waters, and did so on this occasion.’
The FCO explained that all incursions in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters are raised with the relevant Spanish authorities.
HMS Chiddingfold and Penzance had been carrying out training with two patrol ships, HMS Sabre and Scimitar, which are both based at Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron, along with two PAC24 RHIB vessels, which are used for rescue, anti-piracy and counter-narcotics missions.
The exercise was set to be HMS Chiddingfold and HMS Penzance’s last before setting off to the Middle East to join Operation Kipion for the next three years.
Patrol ships escorted the Rayo P-42 out of British waters after the training exercise had ended
Both ships had docked at Gibraltar on their way to Bahrain, tasked with patrolling the Gulf and Indian Ocean to keep peace and stability in the region, while ensuring the safe flow of oil and other trade.
Last month the Royal Navy escorted the Spanish Patrol Vessel P43 Relámpago away after it sailed into British territory and came closeto nearby pleasures boats on the East of the Rock.
HMS Sabre escorted the ship for more than an hour until it left British waters. On May 6 the Spanish vessel Infanta Cristina entered Gibraltar’s territory.
In February 2019 a Spanish warship with its guns manned tried to order commercial vessels to leave Gibraltars British waters.
The warship’s crew could be heard in an audio recording of a radio exchange telling vessels anchored at the Rock to ‘leave Spanish territorial waters’.
Royal Navy boats were deployed and confronted the ship, which then sailed along the Gibraltar coast ‘with its weapons uncovered and manned’.
Boats which were ordered to leave remained at the port during the incident, which was branded ‘foolish’ by a spokesman for Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar.
In 2017 there 541 incursions into waters off Gibraltar, that figure shot up to 816 in 2018.