U.S. Spots Russian Spy Ship Near Georgia Coast

The U.S. military discovered a Russian intelligence ship near Kings Bay, GA, on its way to Cuba. Kings Bay hosts the U.S. Navy’s East Coast ballistic missile submarine fleet.

The sophisticated ship can cut “undersea cables and other sensors.” The U.S. has been monitoring the ship since satellites caught it on radar last month. But as of yesterday, the ship is only 300 miles away from the U.S.

“They are operating in international waters, just like we do,” explained a Navy spokesperson.

Another senior defense official confirmed to FOX News that the U.S. also operates spy ships near Russia.

“Of course we do, what do you think all those ‘oceanographic ships’ are doing, studying whales?” he said.

There is no information yet available on the type of ship it is, but the Russian government recently added a “highly advanced spy ship” with the ability to track “‘all elements’ of the U.S. missile defense.” Russian President Vladimir Putin introduced the high-tech ship, known as Admiral Yuri Ivanov, into the Northern Fleet on July 26. From ValueWalk:

A Russian navy spokesman said the new vessel would be tasked with keeping close tabs on the U.S. missile defenses. The spy ship has a cruising range of 8,000 miles. Yuri Ivanov is packed with highly advanced electronic equipment and sensors, and is specifically outfitted to loiter and listen to the U.S. naval systems. It gathers radio and electronic intelligence, as well as conducts electronic warfare.

According to Russian media, the vessel can also blast the air with massive electronic noise to jam communications and confuse enemy sensors. It makes almost impossible for the enemy to locate Russian forces. Another ship in the same class, which has been under construction since 2013, will enter sea trials in 2016. In total, the Russian navy will have four Yuri Ivanov-class spy ships by 2020.

In January, Russian spy ship Viktor Leonov CCB-175 arrived in Havana, Cuba, a day before U.S.-Cuba talks. Cuba did not announce the arrival, but U.S. officials “played down” the existence of the ship since it is “legal and not at all out of the ordinary.”

The U.S. military spotted that same ship along with the Nikolay Chiker off the coast of Kings Bay in April. The ships hold 200 soldiers with high-tech electronic surveillance equipment and weaponry, AK-630 rapid-fire cannons, and surface-to-air missiles.”