US Coast Guard reports another sighting of Russian naval vessels near Alaska

USCGC Stratton observed a Russian flotilla of naval ships operating near the Alaskan coast in mid-September. (US Coast Guard)

US Coast Guard (USCG) Legend-class National Security Cutter (NSC) USCGC Stratton observed a flotilla of Russian Federation Navy (RFN) vessels on 15 September operating 57 n miles northwest of Point Hope, Alaska, the USCG reported on 16 September.

While on a routine patrol in the Chukchi Sea, the crew of Stratton (WMSL 752) observed the RFN vessels – a Severodvinsk-class submarine, a Dolgorukiy-class submarine, a Steregushchiy-class frigate, and a Seliva-class tug – transiting southeast along the Russian side of the maritime boundary line (MBL), the USCG reported.

“The crew of the Stratton witnessed the RFN vessels cross the MBL into the US Arctic and moved to observe the vessels,” the USCG reported. “The Russian vessels were assessed to be avoiding sea ice on the Russian side of the MBL and operated in accordance with international rules and customs as they transited approximately 30 n miles into the US exclusive economic zone.”

Homeported in Alameda, California, Stratton is patrolling US Arctic waters as part of Operation ‘Frontier Sentinel'.

For more information on another recent reported Russian naval incursion in the region, please see US patrol shadows Russian naval vessel near Alaska amid growing concerns of adversarial encounters in High North.

“We are actively patrolling our maritime border in the Bering Sea, Bering Strait, and Chukchi Sea,” said Rear Admiral Megan Dean, commander of Coast Guard District Seventeen, in a statement.