Russian Warship Armed With Hypersonic Missiles Sails Near German Island
Russia has positioned a guided-missile frigate armed with Kalibr cruise missiles and Zircon hypersonic weapons off the German island of Fehmarn, a deployment that heightens an already tense Baltic standoff between Moscow and NATO.
The Admiral Kasatonov, a Northern Fleet frigate commissioned in 2020 and described by Moscow as one of its most modern warships, reached the Baltic last week after operating in the Mediterranean and the English Channel, where it escorted Russian vessels. The German newspaper Kieler Nachrichten reported that the ship arrived only days after another Russian vessel, the destroyer Admiral Levchenko, moved into the same area.
The Telegraph separately reported seeing the frigate off Fehmarn, a popular tourist island on Germany's Baltic coast, and said the vessel was sailing with its location tracker switched off. As of Monday afternoon, it was unclear whether the ship remained near the island, the paper said. Germany's military did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Moscow has not publicly acknowledged the deployments.
The naval moves come as the Kremlin has stepped up warnings against European efforts to target Russia's shadow fleet, the aging and often sanctioned vessels used to move Russian oil and cargo in defiance of international sanctions. During an inspection of a Russian warship, President Vladimir Putin said Moscow would retaliate against British and EU vessels involved in seizing Russia-linked ships, describing such seizures as "piracy and robbery." He added that Russia would "respond in kind" wherever it considered necessary, singling out the Pacific Ocean.
Britain and France have intercepted several such vessels, including the Smyrtos, which British Royal Marine Commandos boarded. The U.K. National Crime Agency says it has sanctioned nearly 600 shadow-fleet ships. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, has separately threatened attacks on European merchant ships supporting Ukraine.
The broader worry for NATO is that the naval movements are not simply a demonstration. The Telegraph has also reported that Russia is building secret bases near its border with Ukraine to produce attack drones capable of reaching NATO territory, and that U.S. intelligence has warned Moscow could test NATO's resolve with a small-scale attack on Poland or a Baltic state within weeks.
For Berlin, the frigate's appearance near Fehmarn is a reminder of the Baltic's renewed strategic vulnerability. Even a single modern warship operating with its transponder off in a crowded sea lane can force NATO navies to adjust patrols, disrupt civilian traffic, and test how quickly allies respond. The episode is likely to intensify calls in Germany for a stronger NATO presence on the eastern flank, and to keep the Baltic's waters firmly in the center of the standoff.